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Revelation Interpreted 



J BY 

REV. Gf A.^KRATZER 

Lecturer, Teacher and Practitioner of Christian Science, 

Author of "Dominion Within ", "Spiritual 

Man'", and Various Pamphlets 



First Edition 



Copyrighted 1915 
By The Author 



Published and For Sale by 
THE CENTRAL CHRISTIAN SCIENCE INSTITUTE 

5521 Cornell Ave. 
CHICAGO,- ILLINOIS 



^> 






DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE 

"Christian Science Has its Declaration of Independence. God 
has endowed man with inalienable rights, among which are 
self-government, reason and conscience. Man is properly self- 
governed only when he is guided rightly and governed by his 
Maker, divine Truth and Love. Man's rights are invaded 
when the divine order is interfered with." — "Science and 
Health," 106:6-12. 

"For this Principle [of Science] there is no ecclesiastical 
monopoly." — "Science and Health," 141 \ij. 

"I once thought that in unity was human strength ; but have 
grown to know that human strength is weakness — that unity 
is Divine might giving to human power, peace." — Mrs. Eddy, 
in "Miscellaneous Writings," page 138. 

"Aspirations pure and Godward, steadfast purpose, honesty, 
understanding and independent action alone fit us for the 
science of Life." — Mrs. Eddy, in First Edition of "Science 
and Health" 



LC Control Number 




tmp96 027353 

©C1A406551 



^> 



. To 

My Uncle, Charles Kratzer — a life of helpfulness 
to others, of noble sacrifices and faithfulness to duty 
— this book is affectionately dedicated. 

THE AUTHOR. 



TABLE OF CONTENTS 

PAGE 

Introduction ■ i 

Prologue 29 

Sections 

I. Messages to the Seven Churches 45 

II. The Vision of the Seven Sealed Letters 105 

III. The Sounding of the Seven Trumpets 167 

IV. The Woman, The Dragon, and The Beasts 249 

V. Vision of Christ Judging the World 315 

VI. The Vision of the Last Days 333 

VII. The Vision of the Holy City 367 

Epilogue 377 

Personal Application 383 

Glossary 387 

St. John, The Evangelist 391 

Announcements 397 



PREFACE 

As Jacob wrestled with the angel through a long night of 
darkened understanding, but would not let him go until he 
had gained the victory and won his way into the morning light 
of spiritual illumination, so the author has wrestled, not with 
one angel, but with many — the Angels of the Apocalypse — 
through a night much longer than that of an arctic winter, 
during which he was unable to clearly understand their heav- 
enly message. Wrestling until he prevailed, he has been 
blessed in seeing the ladder of mediatorial consciousness* 
which links the human to the divine, and by which the angels 
or divine ideas descend, only that they may ascend to lead 
humanity upward. He hopes that the perusal of the follow- 
ing interpretation of the Apocalypse may aid every reader in 
gaining a more clear and helpful understanding of the word 
of God as presented in St. John's vision. 

G. A. K. 



* "That life-link forming the connection through which the 
real reaches the unreal." — Science and Health, 350:18. 



INTRODUCTION 

In the last chapter of the Gospel of St. John, it is related 
that Peter, looking upon John, "saith to Jesus, Lord, and 
what shall this man do? Jesus saith unto him, If I will that 
he tarry- till I come, what is that to thee? Follow thou me. 
Then went this saying abroad among the brethren, that that 
disciple should not die ; yet Jesus said not unto him, He shall 
not die; but, If I will that he tarry till I come, what is that to 
thee?" Long after all of the other original twelve disciples 
had passed away, and even after the apostle Paul had suffered 
martyrdom, St. John was still living; and, in the last few 
verses of chapter i of the Apocalypse, its author tells us that 
Christ Jesus appeared to him, when "he was in the isle that is 
called Patmos", and he further adds : "He laid his right hand 
upon me, saying unto me, Fear not ; I am the first and the last : 
I am he that liveth and was dead ; and, behold, I am alive for- 
evermore, Amen; and have the keys [the solution of the 
problem] of hell and of death. Write the things which thou 
hast seen [observed], and the things which are, and the things 
which shall be hereafter." It is not to be presumed that 
Christ Jesus appeared in the flesh to the author of the Apoca- 
lypse at this time, but, rather, in some such sense as he 
appeared to Paul on his famous journey to Damascus, though 
with a much fuller message than that given to Paul, — the 
message of the Apocalypse itself. So it would seem that 
St. John did "tarry" till the Christ came to him again after 
the ascension and gave him the message which is to be the 
subject of our study. 

1 



REVELATION INTERPRETED 



Arguments for Authorship by Evangelist John 

The perfect fulfilment of the prophecy at the end of the 
Gospel of John through the giving of the Apocalypse by Christ 
to a man named John, as related above, would seem to the 
author, when taken in connection with the other considera- 
tions which are to follow, to establish beyond question that 
the Apocalypse was written by the same person who wrote 
the fourth Gospel, and not by some other man named John, 
as a few scholars still contend. <In the second verse of chap- 
ter i, the author of the Apocalypse declares that he was the 
servant of Jesus Christ "who bare record [in the Greek, 
emarturese, the historical past tense] of the word of God, 
and the testimony of Jesus Christ, and of all things that he 
saw". This is but a declaration that the author of the Apoca- 
lypse was the John who, in the fourth Gospel, written many 
years before, was already well known to have borne record 
"of the word of God, and of the testimony of Jesus Christ, 
and of all things that he saw." This declaration also sounds 
characteristically similar to the opening words of the First 
Epistle General of John : "That which was from the begin- 
ning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, 
which we have looked upon, and our hands have handled of 
the word of life. . . . That which we have seen and 
heard, declare we unto you." Any seeming discrepancies in 
the literary style of the- fourth Gospel and of the Apocalypse 
can be explained by the fact that they were doubtless written 
many years apart and under widely varying circumstances ; 
in other words, in very different periods of John's experience 
and literary and spiritual development. It is regarded as 
practically certain that John wrote his Gospel in Hebrew dur- 
ing his residence in Jerusalem and then later translated it into 
Greek — or possibly employed a scribe to translate it under 
his supervision. On the other hand, it seems clear that John 
wrote or dictated the Apocalypse directly in Greek, — in 
extreme age, and during his residence at Ephesus ; and there 



INTRODUCTION 



seem to be internal evidences that he wrote under great stress, 
if not under excitement, — haste to put into writing the great 
message that was crowding in upon him faster than he could 
inscribe it, — a very common experience with those who write 
by inspiration. To more than counterbalance apparent differ- 
ences between the literary style of the Gospel, the Epistle of 
John, and the Apocalypse, there are striking resemblances, — 
notably the occurrence in all of these works of a characteristic 
technical use of many Greek words and phrases, such as 
would be developed in the diction of a writer who was express- 
ing himself on some definite line of thought with scientific 
accuracy and discrimination in order that he might bring out 
fine shades of meaning. This fact was first observed per- 
haps by Bishop Westcott and is now freely commented on 
among scholarly critics and interpreters of the New Testa- 
ment. The summation of the entire question may be found 
in the fact pointed out by a careful student of the whole 
situation, that, from all the records of the different Christians 
of the period, which have come down to us, it is impossible 
to decide upon any one, save John the son of Zebedee, who 
could have had anything like the spiritual experience and the 
other special qualifications which were necessary in order 
to have written this work. 

Evidences of Greek Influence 

John was a Jew, thoroughly familiar with Jewish cus- 
toms and habits of thought, and with the Hebrew Scriptures, 
although he wrote in Greek. It is also doubtless true, though 
not as evident to the average reader of the present day, that 
John was familiar with Greek literature, and especially with 
the writings of Plato, and that the form of the Book and 
some of its contents are due to Greek influence. The line of 
thought symbolized in the letters to the seven churches of 
Asia is strongly suggestive of the philosophy of Plato. When 
we remember that, from the time of Alexander the Great 
onward, the Greek language was the language of literature 



REVELATION INTERPRETED 



and of culture over a large part of Western Asia and North- 
western Africa, we can at once understand that the Greek 
dramas and Greek philosophy, and even the Greek myth- 
ology, would naturally have been read by any person of even 
moderate learning, living in that part of the world ; and that 
St. John, in his later years, came strongly under Greek 
influence, need not, therefore, seem surprising. We remember 
that, as related in the seventeenth chapter of Acts, St. Paul 
quoted from one of the Greek poets in a way which indicates 
his familiarity with the Greek literature. 

References to Astronomy 

In that time, there was not, of course, much well-defined 
knowledge in the realm covered by what we call natural 
science. There was some knowledge of the anatomy of the 
human body, and there was an elaborately developed system 
of astronomy, far more correct on its descriptive side than on 
its physical and mathematical sides, as measured by present 
standards. This system of astronomy, including its signs of 
the zodiac and subdivisions thereof, was currently used in 
reckoning time ; and we have to take this fact into account in 
order to understand some phrases in the Apocalypse. 

Problem of Interpretation Not Unsolvable 

At the beginning of the Apocalypse, John represents him- 
self as being commanded to write a book embodying a message 
given to him ; and he has done so, expressing the thought in 
a series of images and symbols which have proven so intricate 
and confusing to all readers, that, until very recent years, 
hardly a beginning of a successful interpretation of the greater 
portion of the Book had been made, notwithstanding 
that scores of commentators, from the third century down 
to the present time, have tried to unravel the mystery, among 
whom there is the widest imaginable divergence of opinion 



INTRODUCTION 



as to the interpretation of many chapters.* As explained in 
the chapter on the Prologue, following, this figurative expres- 
sion was probably the way in which the ideas came to John's 
aspiring thought, and the figures which he used were clear 
to him, but it would seem that only those can unravel their 
meaning who have attained a consciousness in some degree 
approximating John's spiritual level, and thus have sufficient 
understanding of the ways of God with men to know what 
must be approximately the right idea in a given situation, and 
hence approximately what St. John might be expected to teach. 
Having in this way a clear indication as to what general mean- 
ing to look for in connection with a given symbol, the investi- 
gator is, after more or less thought, able to see exactly what 
the meaning must certainly be. The meaning having thus 
been once seen, it will be found to fit upon the image or 
symbol perfectly, and usually the interpretation of the symbol 
brings out and enforces a lesson of great value. 

The Author's Experience 

Like all students of human development, personal and 
racial, the author has long been perplexed as to what attitude 
he should hold toward certain human problems. In study- 
ing the Apocalypse, he came, after a time, to see that in cer- 
tain chapters St. John is dealing with just these problems, and 

* Mr. F. L. Rawson, M.I.E.E., A.M.I.C.E., of London, author of 
"Life Understood," a book which students of metaphysics would do 
well to read, suggests that perhaps the principal reason why the message 
of the Apocalypse was not given in plain language is, that it was better 
that what was to transpire in the future should not be made known to 
mankind except as the Science of spiritual understanding was more 
fully attained, so that men would know how to mentally handle and 
destroy evil as its fuller workings became revealed. It might have had 
a disastrous effect if all the evil uncovered in the Apocalypse should 
have been made known to mankind when there were none who would 
understand how to scientifically utilize the power of God to meet this 
evil. 



REVELATION INTERPRETED 



with this cue, after further meditation upon the symbolism 
used, he reached the conviction that St. John takes a definite 
attitude with regard to these problems. His teaching, thus 
interpreted, was found to be extremely helpful and convincing. 
It has clarified the mind of the author with regard to several 
vexed questions in relation to which he had not previously 
felt the conviction of certitude. He is therefore led to think 
that many other students of the Book may reach the same 
satisfying conclusions, and that, when St. John's teaching is 
clearly understood by them, it will bear witness for itself as 
being authoritative and final, — as being indeed the very dictum 
of the Christ, to be implicitly followed and obeyed. 

Christian Science the Key 

In verse 7 of chapter 10, John represents the Christ as 
declaring solemnly that "In the days of the voice of the 
seventh angel, when he shall begin to sound, the mystery of 
God should be finished." As is well known, in Scripture the 
symbolical sense of "seven" is completeness or completion. 
Hence, the proclamation of the seventh angel must be con- 
sidered as representing the completion of the revelation of 
Truth; and this is what those who understand Christian 
Science believe that Science to be. Accordingly, this verse 
of Scripture declares that after Christian Science begins to 
be proclaimed in the world, the time will have arrived when, 
according to the prophecy of the Apocalypse itself, the mes- 
sage "sealed up" (see verse 4 of this chapter) therein is to 
be unsealed and interpreted so that it can be understood. 
Thus will St. John "prophesy again", as foretold that he 
"must", in the eleventh verse of this same chapter. His words 
will become a clear, vital, and profoundly important message 
to this age, showing clearly in their order all the steps in 
progress which individuals and the race must take in order 
to reach the final goal of the demonstration of life wholly 
spiritual, harmonious and eternal. 



INTRODUCTION 



Present Work Compared With Previous Commentaries 

The first discerning interpretation of any portion of Reve- 
lation that the author of this Study has read was made by 
Mrs. Eddy in her chapter on "The Apocalypse", in Science 
and Health with Key to the Scriptures. In that chapter, 
however, she attempts an exposition of only a very limited 
portion of the Book, though she correctly illustrates the gen- 
eral method by which all of it is to be rightly interpreted. 

The author has read the work of many of the best known 
commentators upon the Apocalypse, but has found among all 
these scarcely the proverbial "two grains of wheat in a bushel 
of chaff" in the way of what seems to him a correct exposi- 
tion. He has also read several recent expositions, not widely 
known as yet, and has derived from these a number of valu- 
able suggestions, acknowledgment for which will be made at 
the proper places in the body of the book. In preparing this 
work, the author has carefully consulted the Greek text, with 
the aid of the best lexicons, also the best known modern 
translations, and has considered variations in the original 
manuscripts from which the standard Greek texts are com- 
piled. 

The Spiritual Point of View 

The author of this Study has had an advantage, enjoyed 
by no commentator whose work he has read, namely, the 
knowledge of Christian Science, by which he has gained a 
sense of the spiritual significance of the writings of John in 
the light of divine Principle. It is evident to him that John, 
as the disciple of Jesus, had the spiritual point of view which 
has been again brought to human thought in Christian Science ; 
and that no person who has not this spiritual point of view 
can interpret or understand much of John's symbolism. The 
interpretation given in this Study must therefore differ in 
many places from that given by all who are unacquainted with 
Christian Science. 



8 REVELATION INTERPRETED 



Suggestions Requested 

The author has made an honest endeavor to bring to the 
entire text of the Book the Christ-light which dawns anew 
in Christian Science, and which Mrs. Eddy has shown her 
students how to use in her interpretation of vital parts of the 
Book ; and these Notes are made available to other students of 
the Bible at the earnest request of many who have read por- 
tions of them in manuscript, and "with the single purpose and 
hope that they may be helpful to them as they have been to 
the author in his endeavor to profit by St. John's remarkable 
writing, and thus attain to more of that Mind "which was also 
in Christ Jesus." The Notes are not intended to be taken 
dogmatically, or to be considered the final word as to the best 
interpretation of any given text. No doubt the interpretation, 
or the form of expression, can be improved at many points, 
sad readers are free to exercise their thought to that end. The 
author would be especially glad of any suggestions which any 
one may have to offer. The Notes are given out with the hope 
that they may stimulate thought and inquiry with regard to a 
portion of the Scriptures, the meaning of which seems obscure 
to the great body of Bible readers, but which is very rich in 
practical spiritual teaching, the author's sense of which has 
been already stated. With respect to the importance of its 
subject matter, its marvelous insight into deep and hidden 
things, its practical value when understood, and withal its 
literary excellence and brilliancy, it is doubtful if another 
human document of equal length can compare with the Reve- 
lation of St. Tohn the Divine. 



Literary Form of Apocalypse Described and Outlined 

The literary form of the Book is undoubtedly that of a 
drama. John may very likely have gotten the suggestion for 
this literary form from the Greek poets, with whose plays he 



INTRODUCTION 



was doubtless familiar. The subject of the drama of the 
Apocalypse may be plainly stated as follows : 

The Drama of the Struggle between Good and Evil upon the 
Field of Human Consciousness, and of the Final Triumph 
of Good. 

While John's thought seems to have been much centered 
upon general and sometimes upon outwardly visible move- 
ments and effects produced by the struggles between good 
and evil in human consciousness, yet he does not treat less 
specifically of the individual problem, and the reader who 
would derive the greatest practical benefit and spiritual uplift 
from the study of Revelation will keep constantly in mind 
that there can never be outward effects except through the 
workings of mental causes, and that there can be no general 
mental movements in the human realm except as individual 
thought, on the part of large numbers, takes part in and 
becomes the basis for these movements. Most of the strug- 
gles which John depicts are now in process, and, accordingly, 
if we would profit by the instruction and the warnings w T hich 
he sets so vividly before us, and escape the terrible penalties 
for wrongdoing which he so forcefully emphasizes, — and 
there is no realizing of good nor escape from suffering unless 
one does profit by instruction and warning like that which he 
gives,— we shall take heed to ourselves personally with regard 
to every phase of the struggle between good and evil which 
he describes, and have a care that we are numbered every day 
and hour among the soldiers of the Christ rather than among 
the followers of Satan. Indeed, the development of every 
human consciousness epitomizes all of the most important 
struggles which are engaged in by mankind as a whole on its 
way up to God, and whatever conflicts John depicts as taking 
place on the fields of humanity as a whole, the reader may 
find going on in his own consciousness if he will but look 
thoughtfully within ; and so all the lessons of the Book are of 
most vital practical value to him who "hath ears to hear". 



10 REVELATION INTERPRETED 

Notes on Specific Subjects 

Note 1. No Dead Line. It is interesting and important 
to note that there is practically no "dead line" in the Book of 
Revelation. St. John recognises the saints "here" and the 
saints "there" or "beyond", as all of one company, following 
Christ. For the most part, he absolutely ignores the experi- 
ence called death as much as he ignores the experience called 
sleep. The drama is carried on above the level of such low 
lines of demarcation. Cattle are separated from each other 
by fences, but birds pay no attention to them, flying back and 
forth and freely intermingling without regard to the fences. 
So the mental activities dramatized in the Apocalypse for the 
most part transcend the dividing line called death, except to 
speak of it in connection with the two resurrections in chapter 
20. We, too, can practically ignore the low fence called death 
in our activities of thought and feeling, if we elevate our con- 
sciousness to a plane sufficiently high above the earth, — above 
materiality in thinking. 

Note 2. Use of Numbers. Numbers are usually employed 
in the Apocalypse in a symbolical rather than in a literal 
sense. The writer has not made an exhaustive original study 
of the symbolical use of numbers in the Bible, but, on the 
authority of those who have, the following brief summary is 
presented. 

"One," "two" and "three" seem to be Spirit-signs, mostly 
used, when used symbolically, with reference to a member of 
the Trinity, — Father, Son, or Holy Spirit. "One" and "three" 
seem never to symbolize evil, and "two" rarely so, though, 
occasionally, it presents a sense of division and opposition, 
thus suggesting satanic activity. 

"Four" seems to be a world-sign, signifying "worldly" or 
"pertaining to the earth," or to humanity. It also signifies all 
of the class mentioned. For example, "Four winds of the 
earth" are all winds, — all destructive forces of evil. The 
"beasts" (better translated "living creatures") about the 



INTRODUCTION 11 



throne, described in the fourth chapter of Revelation, being 
numbered "four", indicates that that which they symbolize 
was formerly in the service of the world. 

"Five" appears to be used as the symbol of government, 
usually God's government of man, though the number is some- 
times used in association with evil, suggesting the government 
of evil. 

"Six" seems to be, in the Apocalypse at least, a satan-sign. 
It falls short of "seven", which is a Sabbath-sign, the sign of 
completion. So "six" is the sign of short-coming, apostasy. 
Some writer whose name the author has been unable to learn 
has written : "Everything satanic is six. . . . Notice that 
the luke-warm church of Laodicea is reproved with six words 
of reproof — luke-warm, wretched, miserable, poor, blind and 
naked. The unrepentant people of the sixth trumpet have six 
idols, and the people who follow this 'false prophet' are also 
of six kinds, 'the small, the great, the rich, the poor, the free, 
and the bond.' The number of the beast is 666." 

"Seven" , as already indicated, is the Sabbath-sign. It is 
particularly the sign of completeness and of work finished. 
When used symbolically it stands for all of the class men- 
tioned. 

"Eight" is the symbol of that which is "new" in contrast 
with the preceding. 

"Nine" is the symbol of intuitive wisdom. 

"Ten" , as used in the Apocalypse, would seem to be taken 
as the multiple of "five" , carrying with it the "opposition" 
sense of "two" (2x5), and is used in connection with the 
asserted authority or government of evil, as, for instance, the 
"ten horns" of the beast. 

"Twelve" is the symbol of that which is close to God and 
manifests His government. 

"A thousand" indicates a large but indefinite number, just 
as, on returning from a meeting, we might say, "There were 
a thousand people present", meaning, not exactly a thousand, 
but a large number. It is also regarded as a symbol of spir- 



12 REVELATION INTERPRETED 

itual conquest. See comment on chapter 2, verse 7, in the 
pages following. 

"144,000" probably takes its symbolic meaning from the 
numbers of which it is a multiple (12x12x1,000). It indi- 
cates a large but indefinite number under the manifest govern- 
ment of God. 

Note 3. Chronology. The numbers used in connection 
with chronology in the Apocalypse are all symbolical, instead 
of literal. 

"Ten days" , mentioned in chapter 2:1, may be explained as 
follows : One of the constellations in the zodiac (though not 
one of the twelve major "signs of the zodiac") is "Draco", 
the dragon. "The dragon" is one of the Apocalyptic symbol? 
for satan. In its yearly journey through the heavens (that 
is, as it appears), it takes the sun ten days to pass through 
the constellation "Draco". Hence, "ten days" is dragon-time, 
and stands for the period of the reign of satan. 

"Five months", mentioned in chapter 9:5, may be inter- 
preted in the following manner. It is stated that men are to 
be tormented "five months" by "locusts" , which are symbols 
for evil emissaries of satan. Locusts live and are active only 
during the five summer months. Hence, "five months" well 
indicates the full period of their activity, and stands for locust- 
time; that is, for the entire period of the activity of satanic 
influences ; so the period "five months" is the same as that 
indicated by "ten days". 

"Time, times, and half a time" , "forty and tzuo months" , 
"one thousand and two hundred and three-score days" ; that 
is, 3^2 years, 42 months, 1260 days, which are exactly equiva- 
lent, reckoning thirty days to the month, — these are the time 
expressions most frequently used in the Apocalypse. Their 
symbolic value is determined from the fact that y/ 2 years is 
just half of "seven" years ; that is, of all years, or of all time, as 
contra-distinct from eternity, which is the opposite of time, as 
"eternity" refers to the spiritual and changeless sense of things, 
while "time" refers to the material and destructible sense of 



INTRODUCTION 13 

things. This period of y/2 years is invariably mentioned in 
connection with the activity of satan or some of his manifesta- 
tions. Hence, this period is also satan-time. It indicates that 
the Apocalypse teaches that, during about one-half of human- 
ity's experience in the material or time-sense, satan will seem 
to be in the ascendency in the affairs of the world* ; but that, 

*Note. — If it seems to any reader startling, and beside the mark, 
to regard the present time as within the period of apparent satanic 
ascendency, let him consider the following fact as a sample of present 
conditions : 

The law of the City of Chicago requires that saloons and all res- 
taurants in which liquor is sold shall close at one o'clock in the morning. 
In December, 1912, it got rumored abroad that these places were going 
to keep open on New Year's Eve until three o'clock, with the consent 
of the Mayor and the Police Department, in order that the drunken 
carousals might go on unchecked. The clergymen of the city got 
together, and, after due deliberation, three hundred of them went in a 
body to the City Hall to protest against any such infringement of the 
law. The Mayor absolutely refused to see this delegation, representing 
the Christian forces of the city. This Mayor is not regarded as being 
personally a bad or intemperate man ; but he evidently felt that, when- 
ever it came to a test, the forces of evil in the city were stronger than 
the forces of righteousness, and, as a politician, he stood with what he 
regarded as the stronger force. The saloons and restaurants remained 
wide open on New Year's Eve, and it was found impossible to make a 
successful prosecution of the Mayor or anyone else for this open, pre- 
meditated and willful violation of the law. This is a fair sample of 
what might occur at the present in any of the great cities of the world, 
and in many of the smaller ones. 

The following, written in 191 3 by Mr. Bernard Shaw, may be some- 
what overdrawn, but it is largely to the point, nevertheless : 

"When I travel about Europe," he says, "and see 
Germany studded with colossal images of the man of blood 
and iron, the latest being also the highest and most irre- 
sistibly suggestive of Dagon and Moloch; when I read the 
recent history of the triumphs of Mars in Tripoli, Morocco 
and the Balkan states; when I see compulsory military 
service rapidly becoming universal and Mars achieving 
miracles of submarines and aeroplanes in a few years, 
whilst Christ cannot in as many centuries get rid even of 
such a blazing abomination as the mixed general work- 
house, I really cannot see how anyone can allege that 
Christianity has gained an inch since the crucifixion. 



14 REVELATION INTERPRETED 

after that, Christ will reign in harmony during an equal 
period, before the sense of matter is finally destroyed ; in 
other words, that the period before the millennium commences 
will be about equal to that which follows the commencement 
of the millennium and ends with the destruction of the 
material sense of heaven and earth. 

"Three days and a half" , mentioned in chapter 1 1 :g, is half 
of seven days, half of all days, half of all time, and symbolizes 
the period of satanic ascendency, the same as the time periods 
or symbols which we have been considering. 

"Half an hour", mentioned in 8:1, refers to the latter half 
of the time period, and is synonymous in meaning with "a 
thousand years". 

"A thousand years", the millennial period, mentioned in 
chapter 20, is doubtless a "round number", indicating a long 
period of time, after discord has been overcome, in which har- 
mony will reign supreme among men still dwelling in material 
sense, in fulfilment of that portion of the Lord's prayer which 
reads : "Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done, in earth 
(the human-sense realm) as it is in heaven (the spiritual 
realm)". Probably "a thousand years" stands for about the 
same length of time as "3^ years", "five months", and "ten 
days", though these three latter are satan-signs, while "a 
thousand years" is, in this connection, a Christ-sign, and 
symbolizes the period of spiritual conquest and victory which 
is to follow the period of apparent satanic ascendency. 

Note 4. Adherence to Principle. 

(a) The attempt is made in these Notes, so far as possi- 
ble, to conform to the requirements of the absolute and eternal 
truth, that God is "of purer eyes than to behold evil and can- 
not look upon iniquity", and that "God is light, and in Him 

"If one were to dramatize the world movement of the 
struggle between Christ and Mars, Christ is down and out, 
despised and rejected of men; spat upon, nailed up and 
laughed to scorn." 

When Christ shall have become ascendent among men, such things 
as these cannot occur. 



INTRODUCTION 15 



is no darkness at all". This divine Principle of being was 
surely known to St. John (See I John, 1:5); nevertheless he 
does not seem to have tried to express himself in harmony 
with this Principle, but rather from the standpoint of human 
appearance, in the working out of humanity's problem. 

(b) In this interpretation, God is regarded as absolute 
Mind, and there will not be attributed to Him thoughts and 
deeds which can belong only to a mediatorial consciousness, 
more or less highly spiritual, but still short of the absolute. 
This mediatorial consciousness is spoken of as "the Christ- 
consciousness", and often as ''higher understanding", or some 
equivalent phrase. 

(c) Further, God is not represented as purposely 
approaching men, either directly or through Christ or angels, 
as is often stated in Revelation ; but the fact of men's approach 
to God through the Christ-consciousness or through their per- 
ception of angelic ideas is set forth instead. 

(d) God and Christ and the angels of God are not rep- 
resented as inflicting punishment or other evil upon men ; but, 
instead, the fact is set forth that ignorance and sin are auto- 
matically and necessarily excluded from harmony, just as 
darkness is necessarily excluded from light, evil being by its 
very nature confined to its own realm of discord, where it 
must of necessity punish itself. 

Note 5. No God of Wrath. The Authorized Version, 
and all the modern translations that the author has consulted, 
save one, represent God and Christ and the angels of God as 
being angry at the wicked, and as meting out wrath to the 
wicked. This is due to a mis-translation of what seems the 
evident sense of the original Greek. There are two Greek 
words which the various translators have rendered "wrath". 
They are orge and thumos. The author does not deny that 
"wrath" is sometimes a legitimate rendering for these words, 
everything depending upon the connection in which they are 
used. 

Liddell & Scott's Greek Lexicon gives as primary defini- 



16 REVELATION INTERPRETED 

tions of orge, "natural impulse or pro pension, disposition, 
nature, heart." Hence, the orge of God would represent His 
nature, that is, Love and its activity. To be sure, the divine 
orge is destructive of evil, and is feared and hated by those 
who desire to cling to evil ; nevertheless, the world connotes a 
very different state of divine consciousness and activity from 
that indicated by the word " wrath". 

As previously quoted, the Scripture declares, that God "is 
of purer eyes than to behold evil, and cannot look upon 
iniquity." God knows nothing of evil or evildoers, and does 
not consciously deal with them in any way. But when divine 
Love is reflected in human consciousness, where it assumes 
a mediatorial character, it takes the form of great desire and 
strenuous activity to save men from their sins and to destroy 
evil. Spiritual love never desires or strives to punish men for 
the sake of punishing them. If mediatorial love ever does 
inflict penalties or deprivations upon men, it does so only as a 
last resort to effect their reformation, or to prevent them from 
harming others, having previously tried every gentle and per- 
suasive means to this end. The authorities of ecclesiastical 
organizations haA^e often imposed penalties upon members of 
such organizations for wrong-doing, for the purpose of pun- 
ishing them ; but they were not reflecting the divine orge in 
doing so, but were reflecting satan, if the infliction of punish- 
ment was their primary purpose. 

Other meanings of orge than the fundamental ones above 
given fit exactly upon the exercise of mediatorial divine love, 
as above described. The word is derived from the verb orgad, 
which means, primarily, to swell with passion, and connotes, 
among other meanings, the frenzy of sexual love. In its 
reversed higher sense, it indicates mediatorial divine love in 
a perfect frenzy of desire to propagate righteousness and to 
save men from evil. Orge is closely related by derivation to 
the Greek orgia, from which is derived our English word 
"orgy", suggesting that the divine orge (nature), when 
reflected in human consciousness, takes the form of media- 



INTRODUCTION 17 



torial love that is nothing short of riotous in its evangelizing 
and saving work. 

The Greek and Latin languages had a common origin ; and 
the older verb which came, in time, to be pronounced among 
the Greeks orgao came, among the Latins, to be pronounced 
urgeo; and from this verb is derived our English word "urge", 
which suggests that orgc conveys the idea of the urgency of 
mediatorial divine love in its desire to save, thus reenforcing 
the interpretations already given. 

No single English word will adequately translate the Greek 
orgc, but the phrase, "divine impulse of Love, overcoming 
evil" , gives the exact sense in which it is always used in the 
New Testament. 

Thumos should be translated, not "wrath", but "ardor" or 
"enthusiasm". It connotes, not anger from God or from 
those in His service, but the ardor of mediating love to enforce 
the will of God, who is Love. 

Evil-doers are often made to suffer, but, strictly speaking, 
it is not the enforcement of the power of God that makes them 
suffer. The power of God, as applied by men, either abso- 
lutely destroys evil, as when light destroys darkness, in which 
case there is nothing to be punished ; or else good simply 
stands as a wall of adamant against the advance of evil and 
at a certain stage of its advance automatically turns it back 
upon itself to punish with its own discord those who may be 
enmeshed in it.* There is no discord in good with which to 
punish evil ; for in good all is harmony. 

Note 6. Salvation from Evil. Revelation frequently 
seems to speak of men as though they were or could be per- 
manently identified with evil. This Interpretation holds to 
the fact that "the wicked" are evil thoughts and influences, 
not permanently identified with men. The false beliefs of 
human sense constitute the "mortal men", who must disappear 
or be "lost" in proportion as the true sense of man is gained. 
All that is true in human sense constitutes the appearing of 



"Science and Health/' 543:1; 569:21-28. 



18 REVELATION INTERPRETED 

immortal man, who is forever safe. Evil in all its phases is 
to be destroyed, but all human beings are to be saved out of 
evil. Saith the Christ, "And I, if I be lifted up from the earth, 
will draw all men unto me" ; and St. Paul wrote of God, that 
He "will have all men to be saved and to come into the knowl- 
edge of the truth", and "As in Adam all die, so in Christ shall 
all be made alive." The last "all" is certainly as inclusive as 
the first. 

The one phrase in the original Greek of the Apocalypse 
that indicates the duration of punishment or discord is eis 
aionas aionon, which is rendered literally in the margin of the 
Revised Version "unto ages of ages", which probably indi- 
cates the exact sense, — namely, that evil will be manifest and 
its followers will be punished for a very long period, even as 
long as satanic activity endures, but there is nothing to indicate 
that this period will be endless, or that any human being who 
in part follows evil for a time will follow it during the whole 
of this period. The sense would rather seem to be that dur- 
ing this period punishment will be endured by different men 
successively, each suffering as long as he remains enmeshed in 
evil, and no longer. The Greek scholars of the world are now 
quite generally agreed that there is no word or phrase in the 
Apocalypse, used in connection with evil or punishment, which 
legitimately signifies endless duration. The lake of fire and 
brimstone is to be regarded as a symbol of the final absolute 
destruction of evil by the fire of the Holy Spirit, mediatorial 
divine love, rather than as a place of endless torment. 

Much of the Apocalypse is written from the standpoint of 
human experience rather than of strict metaphysical fact, and 
this should be remembered in connection with every passage 
where the text seems to assert or imply that God sends His 
angels or others to punish evil or evil-doers, or that Christ 
punishes evil or evil-doers, or that some human beings are to be 
saved as such, while others are to be eternally lost as such. 
Along these lines the translation in the Authorized Version is 
very misleading. 



INTRODUCTION 19 



Note 7. Use of the word "Heaven 3 . In most cases in the 
Apocalypse, St. John uses the term "heaven" as synonymous 
with the mental realm, either personal or general, where the 
forces of good and evil are still contending. For instance, in 
the 12th chapter, he sees the dragon, satan, "in heaven". So, 
except in the 21st chapter, and perhaps occasionally elsewhere, 
as can be determined by the context, when John speaks of 
"heaven" he means either his own consciousness or else the 
mental realm of humanity which has not yet worked out its 
problem, and he does not mean the realm of absolute Spirit 
and harmony. 

Note 8. Form and Emphasis. Several modern students 
of the Revelation, including the author, are convinced that it is 
cast in a distinct dramatic form, though, of course, not intended 
for presentation on a stage. It has, in form, a definite "cast 
of characters", and has the principal features and figures of 
the universe of nature as "stage settings", and also a "pro- 
logue", seven distinct "acts", and an "epilogue". 

However, though the literary form of the book is dramatic, 
it is not dramatic in the succession of events. In a true 
drama, the events in each act succeed in point of time those 
of the preceding act ; but in the Apocalypse the events or move- 
ments depicted or symbolized in the several parts of the book 
which have the literary form of acts, — these events or move- 
ments do not, for the most part, succeed each other, but take 
place coincidently. In fact, in several of the "acts" the whole 
course of the struggle between good and evil is sketched 
through from the beginning of the Christ-activity to the end 
of evil, though each of these "acts" treats of a different phase 
of the struggle. However, in a general way, — but only in a 
sense that is distinctly large and general, — there is a 
progress of action, and especially of the intensity of action, 
as the thought of the book unfolds ; and in the closing chap- 
ters there is a distinct maturing and finishing of the various 
lines of action symbolized in the earlier "acts". Though the 
form is dramatic, the impression upon the mind of the reader, 



20 REVELATION INTERPRETED 

who gets the thought of the book as a whole, is more epic than 
dramatic. In the Modern Reader's Bible, Professor Moulton 
says : 

"The Revelation of St. John is in literary form a 'rhap- 
sody', ... a new literary form made of the fusion of 
all other literary forms in one. ... In the Hebrew rhap- 
sody, while all literary forms are fused together, it is usually 
the dramatic form that is most prominent ; in St. John's reve- 
lation the prevailing impression is that of epic succession of 
incidents, as narrated by the seer. 

"This revelation is a Vision, falling into seven visions', 
as in the case of Zion Redeemed, or Zachariah's Revelation; 
the seven parts are, however, continuous, one developed out 
of the other, with no break: the distinction is one of analysis. 
It is most important for the interpreter to divest his mind 
of all idea of succession in time. As with Isaiahan rhapsodies, 
the relation of these seven parts is not that of temporal succes- 
sion ; each is complete in itself, and a complete presentation of 
the whole from one side. The connection of the seven is log- 
ical. . . . Like the sections of Isaiah's Vision of Judg- 
ment, the succession of parts may suggest graduation of 
intensity, and a new vision may be the climax of that which 
has preceded." 

Use of the Charts 

As is the case with everything else about the Apocalypse, 
the facts regarding its literary structure are not very evident 
upon the surface, but an understanding of them is essential to 
a full and clear comprehension of its meaning. The skeleton 
of the human body is not in itself attractive, yet the body 
would not be very useful or attractive without it ; nor can the 
form of the body and the relation of its parts be well under- 
stood, without an understanding of its frame ; nevertheless, 
he who should devote the major portion of his attention to an 
understanding of the skeleton would miss the larger and more 
important part of what is to be known about the body. In like 
manner, it seems to be necessary, in an interpretation of the 
Apocalypse, to give an analysis of its literary form, and that 



INTRODUCTION 21 



in some detail, by means of charts, etc., also calling attention 
to some few other facts of a non-spiritual character. This 
intellectual side of the presentation should be regarded by the 
reader as a sort of "John the Baptist, crying in the wilder- 
ness, Prepare ye the way of the Lord, make his paths straight". 
It is to be thought of merely as an aid to a fuller and more 
accurate understanding of the spiritual teaching, and the 
reader should avoid any possible danger of centering his 
thought so much upon what is said about the structure, and the 
like, as to miss the force of the spiritual teaching, — teaching 
which is surely as valuable for the solution of problems now 
pressing upon men, individually and collectively, as any ever 
written. 

The most graphic and easily comprehended presentation 
of the literary structure is given on the large chart inserted 
at the end of the book. Although this chart presents the 
skeleton of the drama, it should not be regarded as merely a 
skeleton. The unities of meaning between symbols and 
phrases widely variant in form, which it discloses, are more 
clearly and graphically brought out in the chart than in any 
other way. By means of it, the different phrases and symbols, 
being thus placed side by side, are made to interpret each 
other, and the underlying unities of thought constitute some 
of the most inspiring and spiritually valuable lessons of the 
book. The author believes that many hours can profitably be 
spent in the study of this chart in connection with the text of 
the Apocalypse. The reader is recommended to spend several 
moments in glancing over the chart before reading further in 
this book. It will readily be noted from an examination of 
the chart that all the actors on the side of good are manifesta- 
tions of the one Mind, the one good, God, and so are one at 
the root ; and all the actors on the side of evil are manifesta- 
tions of evil mentality, the one evil, the devil, and so are also 
one at the root. 

There are several minor characters or actors on the side 
of good and on the side of evil which are not mentioned in the 



22 REVELATION INTERPRETED 

Cast of Characters, but which are classified in the chart under 
the different "acts". 

In a drama on the stage, not all the characters usually 
appear in all the acts, and it is seldom that they all appear in 
any one act; but any given actor appears at least in one act, 
perhaps in two or three, perhaps in all the acts, according to 
his importance in the drama. So it is in the presentation of 
this great world-drama. 

In a drama on the stage, usually the actors frequently 
change their clothing, and sometimes disguise themselves so 
that they are not easily recognized as really carrying out the 
same purpose in different acts. So in this world-drama, the 
various actors appear under frequently varying titles, and fre- 
quently in such different offices as not readily to be recognized 
as the same in the different acts. 

The key to the literary structure, and largely to the inter- 
pretation, of Revelation may be given in two important state 
ments : 

i. Every character on the side of good will be found to 
be counterfeited and opposed somewhere in the drama of the 
Book by an exactly corresponding evil character. More than 
this, every important act or movement on the side of good will 
be found to be similarly counterfeited and opposed on the side 
of evil. 

2. It seems very clear, after close study, that St. John 
wrote this Book on the assumption that after Christ Jesus had 
disappeared in the Ascension, he would- be, and in St. John's 
day had already begun to be, reincarnated as the impersonal 
Christ in the Christian church, and that, as incarnated in the 
church, he would, in conquering the world, go through a kind 
and order of experiences almost exactly duplicating the lead- 
ing experiences of Christ Jesus during his earthly ministry. 

Note 9. Accuracy of Text and Translation. As the author 
will have occasion to call in question, rather frequently, the 
accuracy of the translation given in the Authorized Version, 



INTRODUCTION 23 



and, in some cases, that given in any other translations that he 
is acquainted with, and as he will sometimes have occasion to 
call in question the correctness of the several Greek texts upon 
which modern translations are based, and as some of his 
readers will probably be unfamiliar with questions of text and 
translation, it may be helpful to such readers, if, before the 
work of commenting upon the text of the Book is begun, the 
author shall state the reasons which give him a right to crit- 
ically review both the established Greek texts and all existing 
translations, making changes whenever he can show sufficient 
cause for doing so. 

First, with regard to the matter of translation. Among 
those who have had even a little experience in rendering one 
language into another, it is a well known fact, that any given 
sentence in one language can usually be given several transla- 
tions into another language, each of which is literally and 
grammatically correct, though practically only one translation 
can correctly present the thought which the author of the 
original sentence desired to express. The question, then, is, 
how to know which one of the several possible literal transla- 
tions ought to be chosen. This is always a question of judg- 
ment on the part of the translator, and the determining factor 
with him is, what the general idea of the writer of the original 
sentence on the point which it brings out, and what the sense 
of the immediate context of that sentence, require. Accord- 
ingly, on general principles, other things being equal, the trans- 
lator who best understands the thought of an author as a 
whole will best translate him at points where there is possi- 
bility of doubt. In translating, knowledge of vocabulary, 
grammar, syntax, and rhetoric are very important; but 
acquaintance with an author's point of view and general sys- 
tem of thought are often quite as important on the part of the 
translator or even more so. It may not be amiss to give one 
or two specific instances. 



24 REVELATION INTERPRETED 

A German student of English translated a passage (Matt. 
26:41) from German into English, as follows: 

Der Geist ist willig ; aber das fleisch ist schwach, 
The ghost is ready; but the meat is feeble. 

It should be rendered, 

"The Spirit is zvilling; but the flesh is weak". 

The first of these translations is just as correct from a 
literal and grammatical standpoint as the second. Neverthe- 
less it utterly misses St. Matthew's meaning. 

The sleeper was evidently disturbed in his dreams. 
The sleeper, fortunately, did not leave the rails. 
The sleeper under the east end of the building was badly 
decayed. 

Whoever should try to render these three English sentences 
into any other language, proceeding on the assumption that the 
word "sleeper" had the same meaning in each sentence, would 
get very curious and ludicrous results. In the first sentence, the 
context shows us that the word means a person asleep; in the 
second sentence, the context shows that the word means a rail- 
road car in which people sleep ; in the third sentence, the con- 
text shows that the word means the sill of a building. This 
illustration will serve to indicate the importance of the context 
in determining the meaning of words for translation or other- 
wise. 

Second, with regard to the Greek text. There could be 
little question about this, if St. John's original manuscript 
were in existence and available ; but it is not, and scholars are 
obliged to depend upon copies of copies, more or less remote 
from the original. There are many ancient copies, and they 
do not agree among themselves at many points, showing that 
the copyists were sometimes careless, and sometimes inserted 
words or phrases to suit their own thought of what the text 
should say. Consequently, modern scholars have no absolute 



INTRODUCTION 25 



assurance of the reading of St. John's original manuscript at 
various points, but must compare the various copies, and use 
their own judgment as to which reading is correct at any given 
point. By so doing, several modern Greek texts have been 
published, which are regarded highly, and which are made the 
basis of translation for modern versions. The Authorized 
Version was translated in the time of King James First of 
England (1611), using as a basis previous English transla- 
tions, which in turn were made from a Latin manuscript, 
which had been translated from the Greek in the 4th century.* 
Being a translation of a translation of a translation the Au- 
thorized Version is more especially liable to contain errors. 

In selecting what is probably the original form in which 
St. John wrote a given sentence, a correct knowledge of his 
general point of view and system of thought is just as impor- 
tant as it is in the matter of translation. 

Other things being equal, the man who has the best under- 
standing of St. John's general concept of religious things will 
make the best selection among variant readings in establishing 
the Greek text as a basis for translation. Consequently, the 
writer of these Notes feels at liberty to question the standard 
Greek texts at any point where he can show sufficient cause 
for doing so from an enlarged knowledge of St. John's general 
thought, or from the context, and to make changes thus indi- 
cated, when there is authority in some ancient manuscripts for 
the readings which he adopts. 

*See "How We Got Our Bible," by J. Patterson Smyth. 



26 NOTES BY THE READER 



NOTES BY THE READER 27 



28 NOTES BY THE READER 



PROLOGUE 

i "The Revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave unto him, to 
show unto his servants things which must shortly come to pass; and he 
sent and signified it by his Angel unto his servant John. 

2 Who bare record of the word of God/ and of the testimony of 
Jesus Christ, and of all things that he saw. 

3 Blessed is he that rcadeth, and they that hear the zvords of this 
prophecy, and keep those things that arc written therein; for the time is 
at hand." 



"Jesus Christ" 

"Jesus Christ". When we come to see fully what these 
words mean, they will be found to designate the central figure, 
if not the all-in-all in one sense, of the book which we are to 
study and interpret. 

"The revelation (Greek apocalypsis, "unveiling") of Jesus 
Christ" , on a little reflection, will be seen to mean the same as 
"the testimony (Greek, marturian, "witnessing'') of Jesus 
Christ" (verse 2). The phrase, "the testimony of Jesus", is 
also used in verse 9, modern scholars being agreed that 
" Christ os" (Christ) should be omitted from the Greek and 
English texts. In verse to of chapter 19, St. John tells us that 
the phrase "the testimony of Jesus" means "the spirit of 
prophecy". "The spirit of prophecy" is evidently that highly 
developed spiritual factor or manifestation in human mentality 
which discerns, first of all, the eternal and fixed order of truth 
and good, and perceives fully the false claim of error, and 
then is able to foresee how truth and error will react upon 
each other in the field of human experience, and the general 
course of events which will follow in consequence, ending in 

29 



30 REVELATION INTERPRETED i : 1-3 

the final destruction of error and all its manifestations. Hence, 
according to St. John's own definition, it is this prophetic con- 
sciousness which is meant by the words "Jesus Christ" , rather 
than, or possibly in addition to, that which pertains to the 
earthly history or personal mentality of Jesus of Nazareth, 
although this personal sense of the words "Jesus Christ" is 
the only one which the average reader of Revelation has been 
inclined to consider. 

Here, the important and interesting question naturally sug- 
gests itself, How could the words "Jesus Christ" come to be 
used in a sense so seemingly different from their apparently 
natural significance? To answer intelligently requires a bit 
of analysis. 

The Christ, like the Father, of whom he is the perfect 
reflection, "is of purer eyes than to behold evil, and cannot 
look upon iniquity" Hence, the absolute Christ can have no 
recognition of human needs and human problems, and could 
not, therefore, apply the divine power to meet those needs. 
This can be done by a mediatorial mentality, which can clearly 
discern the spiritual power of Truth and good on the one 
hand, and the ignorance, sin, discord and limitation of human- 
ity on the other, seeing the nothingness of the latter in the 
light of Spirit, and thus intelligently applying the power of 
God to the destruction of evil. A unique degree of this 
mediatorial mentality was a distinguishing mark of Jesus of 
Nazareth. He taught and demonstrated that mentality for 
something over three years in Palestine, and then he overcame 
the flesh, ascended above the belief in matter, effectually denied 
his mortal self, and his human personality vanished, for. he 
had fully "put on Christ." But this mediatorial mentality has 
remained, in greater or lesser measure, in Christ's human 
church, and among many people outside of any formally organ- 
ized church. It was this mentality which rendered Jesus of 
Nazareth of so much significance to the world. He himself 
said : "The flesh profiteth nothing: the words that I speak unto 
you, they are Spirit, and they are life." Indeed, it was because 



I : 1-3 PROLOGUE 31 

it was foreseen that he would have this remarkable spiritual 
endowment that he was given the name "Jesus". "Thou shall 
call his name JESUS: for he shall save his people from their 
sins." (Matt. 1:21). As Thayer's Greek Lexicon suggests, 
among the Jews of that century the word "Jesus' had come to 
mean "Saviour" , although by derivation it originally meant 
the same as "Joshua", "God-helped". The word "Christ" 
(Greek, christos) means "anointed" '. Hence, the words 
"Christ Jesus" , or "Jesus Christ" , mean "anointed Saviour" , 
or "God-blessed Saviour". In the Apocalypse, and in most 
places in the New Testament, these words are used in this 
derivative sense, not with regard to the human personality of 
Jesus of Nazareth, but with regard to the mediatorial men- 
tality which has remained among men to this day, in accord- 
ance with its promise : "ho, J am with you alway, even to the 
end of the world." 

Without this mediatorial mentality, men could not find 
their way to the understanding and demonstration of eternal 
harmony, or "heaven", or to that knowledge of God which 
is the true and everlasting consciousness or life. Hence, John 
17:3 could be correctly paraphrased as follows: 

This is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true 
God, and the way-shower (Jesus Christ, the mediatorial men- 
tality) which thou hast sent. 

Thus, when Jesus uttered these words, he was not referring 
to anything that could be regarded as his own personality, but 
to a. universal spiritualized consciousness among men, which 
Moses and Isaiah, for instance, expressed in large measure, 
of which Jesus himself in his own time was the exponent, and 
which was and is to remain in the world forever, until "the 
former heaven and the former earth have passed azcay, and 
there shall be no more sea" , because the eternal heaven and 
the eternal earth, which are wholly spiritual, shall have been 
demonstrated. "And when all things shall be subdued unto 
him, then shall the Son also himself be subject unto him that 
put all things under him, that God may be all in all" ; that is, 



32 REVELATION INTERPRETED I : 1-3 

the mediatorial consciousness will vanish when the human 
problem is entirely worked out, and so the mediator is no 
longer required as a factor. This spiritual mentality itself 
declared that it antedated Jesus of Nazareth in the words : 
"Before Abraham, was, I am." 

Paul's word in Gal. 3 :28 might be legitimately paraphrased : 

There is neither Jezu nor Greek, there is neither bond nor 
free, there is neither male nor female: for ye are all at one in 
the mediatorial mentality {Christ Jesus), the mentality zvhich 
is aspiring after and struggling for eternal truth and good. 

The words "Jesus Christ" also properly connote "the spirit 
of wisdom" , which not only knows the absolute truth, but 
knows in what measure it should be given to humanity at any 
given stage of its advancement, and knows how to practically 
administer the truth, the law of God, to the best advantage in 
any human situation. This "spirit of wisdom" long antedated 
Jesus of Nazareth. For instance, we read in Proverbs : 

"Doth not wisdom cry? and understanding put forth her 
voice? Receive my instruction, and not silver; and knozvledge 
rather than choice gold. The Lord possessed me in the begin- 
ning of his way, before his works of old. J zvas set up from 
everlasting, from the beginning, or ever the earth zvas. Now 
therefore hearken unto me, O ye children: for blessed are they 
that keep my ways, For whoso findeth me findeth life, and 
shall obtain favor of the Lord. But he that sinneth against 
me wrong eth his own soul." 

It was this "spirit of wisdom," which led Moses to put a 
veil over his face (Exodus 34:29-35), not only to efface as 
much as possible his own personality, but because the glory of 
his countenance was more than the people could bear; that is, 
he could not wisely unveil to them Ihe full measure of truth 
which he had received from God in the mount of spiritual 
exaltation. 

It was this "spirit of wisdom" which is eloquently described 
in the first five verses of the nth chapter of Isaiah and in 
the entire 8th chapter of Proverbs. 



I : 1-3 PROLOGUE 33 

It was the "spirit of wisdom" which led Jesus of Nazareth 
to say to his disciples : "Cast not your pearls before swine, 
lest they turn and rend you", and also: "Unto you it is given 
to know the mystery of the Kingdom of God; but unto them 
that are without, all these things are done in parables, that see- 
ing they may [seem to] see, and not perceive, and hearing they 
may [seem to] hear and not understand." 

It was the "spirit of wisdom" which as "a voice from 
heaven" said unto St. John : "Seal up those things which the 
seven thunders uttered, and write them not." (Rev. 10:4). 

Jesus himself effectually settled any question as to the 
mediatorial Christ being identical with the mental or physical 
personality of Jesus of Nazareth. In Matt. 22 41-45, he is 
recorded as saying to the Pharisees : 

"What think ye of Christ [the anointed one]? Whose 
son is he? They say unto him, the son of David. He saith 
unto them, How then doth David in spirit call him Lord, say- 
ing, The Lord saith unto my Lord, Sit thou on my right hand, 
till I make thine enemies thy footstool? If David then call 
him Lord, how is he his son?" 

If, therefore, we will dissociate the words "Jesus Christ", 
or "Christ Jesus", from our thought of the corporeality, or 
earthly history, or personality of Jesus of Nazareth, and think 
of them as connoting all that may be signified by the terms 
"mediatorial mentality", "way-shower", "anointed Saviour", 
"prophetic consciousness", "the spirit of prophecy", and "the 
Spirit of zmsdom", — or simply such Biblical terms as "the 
Christ"', "the Holy Spirit" , "the Holy Ghost", "the Com- 
forter", "the Spirit of Truth", we shall have a correct sense 
of "Jesus Christ" , as the term is used in presenting the title 
figure of the Apocalypse. In Science and Health, Mrs. Eddy 
speaks of this mediatorial consciousness as "divine Science or 
the Holy Comforter", and says further : "Jesus demonstrated 
Christ ; he proved that Christ is the divine idea of God — the 
Holy Ghost, or Comforter, revealing the divine Principle, 
Love, and leading into all truth." 



34 REVELATION INTERPRETED I : 1-3 

The Apocalypse is the setting forth in images and symbols 
of practically the whole content of the most highly illuminated 
prophetic consciousness, — of all that it sees of the fixed order 
of good and of the details of the false claims of evil, and of 
the struggles between the different phases of good and evil 
in human experience, and of the final issue in the struggle. 

In this sense, the Book is "The Revelation of Jesus 
Christ" ; but there is no article before apokalypsis in the Greek, 
and the words "Jesus Christ" do not convey anything like the 
correct impression to the average reader ; and yet a translation 
should convey the correct impression as nearly as it can be 
made to do so within the limits of a translation, without 
attempting to make a paraphrase of it. 

Perhaps the best we can do as a translation for the first 
three Greek words of verse I is : A revelation from Jesus 
Christ, — which is perfectly permissible, since Icsou Christou 
may be regarded as what the grammarians call a "genitive of 
the source." 

The author feels entirely confident that St. John, when 
rightly understood, does not mean to suggest that the revela- 
tion came to him from a Christ who was verbally dictating to 
him, or who appeared to him as an outward or outlined vision. 
To be sure, a literal interpretation of verse 17 of chapter 1, 
and other verses, would seem to indicate to the contrary, but 
it is perfectly in keeping with an experience that many seers 
have had that St. John should have been temporarily stunned 
by an inward vision of things of great and lofty significance ; 
and the phrase "he laid his right hand upon me" would be a 
common Jewish figurative expression for, He mentally laid 
hold upon me with the impulsion of his inspiration and author- 
ity. As it seems to the author, the Christ who gave this reve- 
lation to John is to be identified with John's own illuminated 
consciousness of Truth and Good in their relation to the affairs 
of the world. This mediatorial consciousness or Christ, on its 
divine side, was from God, and the elements of truth and 
good in the revelation God gave to it (or him) ; and this 



I : 1-3 PROLOGUE 35 

mediatorial Christ in the consciousness of John caused the 
revelation to take form in signs and symbols in the human 
phase of his mentality, and it was then outlined in writing, 
and thus brought to the attention of all men, many of whom 
are not yet sufficiently spiritual to receive this message in its 
entirety from the mediatorial Christ in their own mentalities 
without some detailed indication to guide their thought and 
investigations. 

Any person who has been obliged to struggle mentally to 
gain a clear understanding of some difficult line of thought 
in philosophy or theology has probably many times had the 
experience of having the truth which he sought come to him 
clearly, first of all, in terms of an illustration, and he has prob- 
ably imparted his understanding, thus gained, to others by 
means of this same illustration. There seems little doubt that, 
while the prophetic consciousness impelled John, and thus 
"commanded". him, to write the Book of Revelation, he was 
nevertheless obliged to struggle severely to gain a clear com- 
prehension of the ideas which he was to embody in the Book. 
The whole of the 5th chapter would seem to substantiate this 
view, and especially verse 4 : "And I zvept much, because no 
man was found worthy to open and to read the book, neither 
to look thereon" , — referring to the content of the revelation, 
which first appeared to John as a "sealed" book. As St. John 
mentally struggled to gain a mastery of the lines of thought, 
which he at first saw but vaguely, though perceiving their great 
importance, they were gradually revealed to his consciousness 
in the terms of illustrations, — but not such illustrations as 
would come to a western student in the twentieth century. To 
such a student, comparisons originating from his knowledge of 
natural science, or of incidents or descriptions in modern litera- 
ture or the classics, would be most apt to suggest themselves. 
St. John knew little of natural science, but his thought was 
saturated with an intimate knowledge of the sacred literature 
of the Jews, mostly embodied in what we now call the Old 
Testament, — a literature filled with images and symbols of a 



36 REVELATION INTERPRETED I . 1-3 

kind peculiar to the modes of thought of western Asiatics, and 
the meaning of which was well known to John. Hence, when 
this illuminated understanding came to him, it naturally took 
form in modifications of the Old Testament imagery and 
symbology. 

Says Prof. Moulton, in The Modern Readers' Bible: 

"The most important thing in connection with the sym- 
bolism of -St. John is a point of literary effect, which further 
seems in the poem itself to be indicated as extending beyond 
poetic form into the underlying spiritual interpretation. This 
is that the symbolism of Revelation is the symbolism of Old 
Testament prophecy revived ; the symbolic ideas being not 
merely revived, but at the same time varied, massed together, 
and intensified. Indeed, very few, if any, of St. John's 
symbols are drawn from any other source. Considered from 
the literary side this is the device of 'echoing', which distin- 
guishes all 'classical' poetry, — the special line of poetic suc- 
cession in which each poet makes new creations out of detailed 
reminiscences of the poetry of the past. But in the present 
case this is much more than a literary device. 'The testimony 
of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy : one of the leading thoughts 
of St. John's work is that the mysteries of the old dispensation 
find their solution and fulfilment in the new : similarly, the 
forms of ancient prophecy combine to make the symbolic set- 
ting of the supreme revelation." 

These facts enable us to more fully understand the signifi- 
cance of the verb escmanen, "he signified", in verse I. It 
literally means that the revelation came to John in terms of 
"signs", — that is, images and symbols, — instead of in literal 
language. 

Scholars are quite generally agreed that John intends the 
first two verses of chapter I as a title, or as "headlines", for 
the Book, and Professor Moulton in his Bible, above referred 
to, prints these two verses, and the third verse, which is closely 
connected with them in thought, as "headlines", or almost as 
a "poster", announcing the Book. He gives to the three verses 
a whole page, in display type, breaking them into lines as 
follows : 



I : i-3 PROLOGUE 37 

The Revelation 

of 
JESUS CHRIST 

which God gave him to show unto his servants, even the 

things which must shortly come to pass 

And he sent and signified by his Angel 

unto his Servant 

John 

who bare witness of the word of God and of the testimony 
of Jesus Christ, even of all things that he saw 

Blessed is he that readeth, and they that hear the words of the prophecy, 
and keep the things which arc written therein: 

FOR THE TIME IS AT HAND 

None of the movements and events forecast in the Apoca- 
lypse seem as yet to have been wholly fulfilled for the world 
in general, but most of them are in process of being fulfilled, 
with the end still in the indefinite future. If the phrase, 
"things which must shortly come to pass", be a correct transla- 
tion, and if it refer to the movements and events above men- 
tioned, then St. John has not" been found to be a true prophet 
in one respect, unless the word "shortly" can properly be 
taken to connote an indefinite number of thousands of years ; 
but the words above quoted are not the only correct translation 
of the Greek ha del genesthai en tachei* A little consideration 

*Note. — If questions of text and translation are uninteresting to a 
reader who is unacquainted with Greek, he may merely read through 
paragraphs involving such discussions to catch the general drift of the 
argument, and give close attention only to the conclusions reached. 
The writer would avoid these technical discussions, were it not for 
the fact that his sense of the text and its meaning forces him, at times, 
to take positions that are radical departures from former received 
standards, and, in such cases, the writer must justify the positions 
taken to such readers as are scholars in Greek. 



38 REVELATION INTERPRETED i : 1-3 

will show that the phrase en tachei ("shortly") has a close 
relation in thought to the clause, ho gar kairos eggus ( u for 
the time is at hand"), at the end of verse 3. It has not proven 
true that "the time was at hand" to the world in general for 
the events and movements forecast in the Apocalypse. Hence, 
if we are to regard St. John as a truly inspired prophet, — and 
there is every reason to believe that he is, — we must look for 
some other legitimate translation for genesthai. This is an 
infinitive from the verb gignomai, which has the general mean- 
ing "happen", or "be born" (see Liddell & Scott), but is much 
more indefinite in its meaning than many verbs, so that the 
precise shade of its meaning usually has to be determined from 
the context or connection in which it is used. Things can be 
born mentally as well as physically ; i. e., they can be revealed. 
An examination of the whole line of thought in these three 
verses, taken in connection with a knowledge of the Book as a 
whole — and bearing in mind that these verses are a virtual 
title for the Book, — makes it seemingly clear that the meaning 
of genesthai en tachei is unfold quickly, or possibly, unfold by 
quickening. The sense is, that the things shown unto the 
servants of God are to be revealed to them quickly, but it 
should not be taken that these things are to "come to pass" 
quickly for those who know Him not or for the world. The 
fact is, that when any portion of spiritual knowledge, or knowl- 
edge about things involving the operation of spiritual forces, 
is gained at all, it is gained "quickly", by immediate percep- 
tion. The phrase is probably equivalent in meaning to the sen- 
tence beginning on line 23, page 5o4, of Science and Health, 
by Mary Baker Eddy : "The rays of infinite Truth, when 
gathered into the focus of ideas [gathered into consciousness], 
bring light instantaneously, whereas a thousand years of human 
doctrines, hypothesis, and vague conjectures emit no such 
effulgence." The Apocalypse, rightly understood, is filled with 
suggestions for practical conduct, which, though they are 
usually in the form of suggestions or implications, have the 
force of commands to the consciousness of one who recog- 



I : 1-3 PROLOGUE 39 

nizes their source and their importance. "The time is at hand" 
(verse 3) for the servants of God "that read and hear [com- 
prehend] the words of this prophecy' to "keep [hold in 
thought and obey] those things [the virtual commands] which 
are written therein" ; but there is nothing in the whole situation 
to suggest that "the time is at hand" for the movements and 
events forecast in the prophecy to happen to the world at 
large. 

Practically a conclusive proof that the foregoing line of 
reasoning is correct, is to be found in the comparison of the 
clause, 

ha dei genesthai en tachei from verse 1, of chapter 1, and 

ha mellei ginesthai met a taut a from verse 19 of the same 
chapter. 

An examination of the context makes it practically certain 
that the two pronouns, ha, refer to the same "things". If so, 
the two Greek infinitives cannot be regarded as having the 
same meaning in the two clauses, although from a literal stand- 
point they might be made to mean the same ; for, to render 
them both "come to pass", as the Revised Version does, makes 
St. John speak of the same things as coming to pass "quickly" 
{en tachei) and "hereafter" {meta tauta). But it is entirely 
reasonable that certain movements or events should be revealed 
quickly to the prepared consciousness, but actually transpire 
or come to pass "after that" (the literal rendering of meta 
tauta) , or more slowly, for the whole world. 

It is important to note in this connection that the antecedent 
revealing to the servants of God of the things which must 
later come to pass becomes in large measure the proximate 
cause of those things coming to pass in the personal experience 
of God's servants and in the world at large, at least the more 
quickly, since it enables the servants of God to work according 
to the pattern, thus more directly and intelligently enforcing 
His law. God's law becomes manifest in the world only in the 
measure that human beings apprehend and enforce it ; hence it 
is highly important to rapid progress that men should foreknow 



40 REVELATION INTERPRETED I : 1-3 

the order of advancing demonstration and experience as well 
as the final goal to be attained. 

"He sent and signified it by his Angel unto his servant 
John." The Greek is : "Esemanen aposteilas dia tou aggelou 
autou t§ doulg autou Joanne." The literal meaning of 
esemanen is "he showed by signs", which is nearly the deriva- 
tive sense of the English "he signified" (from the Latin 
signum, a sign, and facere, to make). Taking into account our 
knowledge of the Book as a whole, the sense evidently is "he 
showed by images and symbols." 

There is no proof from a grammatical standpoint as to the 
subject of the verb esemanen; but the sense seems to require 
theos, rather than Icson Christou for the subject ; and the latter 
is evidently synonymous with aggelou. In other words, Jesus 
Christ (the prophetic consciousness) is God's angel or mes- 
senger through whom He communicates the message to His 
servant John. This is the more probable, since "Jesus Christ" 
is unquestionably spoken of as an "angel" many times in later 
portions of the Book. 

Taking these various facts into consideration, we may 
safely adopt the following as a correct translation of verses 

A revelation from Jesus Christ {the prophetic conscious- 
ness), which God gave him, to show unto His servants the 
things which must unfold {be revealed) quickly (i. e., to His 
servants, not necessarily to the world). And He (God) signi- 
fied them (by imagery and symbols), commissioning His 
Angel (the mediatorial Christ) to impart them to His servant 
John, who bore witness to the Word of God and to the testi- 
mony of Jesus Christ (the mediatorial Christ), even of all 
things that he saw. 



NOTES BY THE READER 41 



42 



NOTES BY THE READER 



NOTES BY THE READER 43 



44 



NOTES BY THE READER 



SECTION I 
MESSAGES TO THE SEVEN CHURCHES 

(Chapter 1:4 — 3:22) 

The Impersonal Christ, through John, sends letters of commenda- 
tion, reproof, warning, exhortation, encouragement and 
promise to seven churches of Roman Asia, 
which are wholly symbolical 

In this section, which may be referred to as the first act of 
the drama, the structural relation of which to the Book as 
a whole will be spoken of later, we have introduced as 
characters : — 

Go d, under various titles. 

Christ, under various titles and descriptions. 

The Holy Spirit, as "the seven Spirits which are before His 

throne," identical with "the seven stars" and "the angels 

of the seven churches." 
Satan. 

Balaam, as the false prophet. 
False Apostles, False Jezvs, Followers of Balaam and the Nic- 

alaitanes, as apostles of Satan. 
The Seven Candlesticks, as the Spiritual Woman or Spiritual 

Church. 
Jezebel, as the Carnal Woman or False Church. 

CHAPTER I 

Introduction 

1 i 

Verse 4 John to the seven churches which are in Asia: Grace be 
unto you, and peace, from him which is, and which was, and which is to 
come ; and from the seven spirits whicli are before his throne ; 

5 And from Jesus Christ, who is the faithful witness, and the first 
begotten of the dead, and the prince of the kings of the earth. Unto him 
that loved us, and washed us from our sins in his own blood, 

6 And hath made us kings and priests unto God and his Father; 
to him be glory and dominion for ever and ever. Amen. 

As will be made evident later on "the seven churches of 
Asia' symbolize the seven chief faculties of the human mind 

45 



46 REVELATION INTERPRETED 1:4-8 

assembled for instruction by "the seven angels," or the seven 
chief manifestations of the Christ-mind, which are spoken of 
in verse 4 as "the seven Spirits which are before the throne," 
and in verse 16 as "seven stars." To be sure, churches in 
seven cities in Roman Asia are specified, but historians say- 
that in some of these cities there was no Christian church up 
to the latest time at which St. John could have written the 
Apocalypse, and that in one of these cities there never has 
been, to this day, a Christian church, — a fact which goes far 
to prove the symbolical character of these seven churches. 

"The first begotten of the dead". The mediatorial con- 
sciousness, "Jesns Christ" , the offices of which are discussed 
at some length in the Prologue, alone has triumphed over 
death, and no other order of consciousness ever will thus 
triumph. When we fully attain the "mind in Christ Jesus", 
which Paul exhorted us to have, we shall also gain the victory 
over death. 

"Washed us from our sins, in his own blood," — that is, 
through the agency of his own life and love, of which "blood" 
is the symbol. 

"And hath made us Kings and Priests unto God and his 
Father." Literally, And hath made us a kingdom, — priests 
unto God and his Father. 

It is interesting to note the seven phrases in verses 5, 6, 
descriptive of the character and offices of the Christ, symboliz- 
ing the completeness of his manifestation of God. 

Verses 7, 8 "Behold, he cometh with clouds; and every eye shall see 
him, and they also which pierced him: and all kindreds of the earth shall 
wail because of him. Even so, Amen. I am Alpha and Omega,' the 
beginning and the ending, saith the Lord, which is, and zvhich zvas, 
and zvhich is to come, the Almighty." 

"With clouds". This phrase seems to be used here as a 
symbol of Christ's future exaltation and glory, since it is 
immediately stated that "every eye shall see him". "Clouds" 
are often a symbol of partial obscuration, indicating that spir- 
itual things are more or less hidden from human sense. 



I : 9, 10 SECTION I 47 



The Coming of the Message 

Verses g, io "I, John, who also am your brother, and companion in 
tribulation, and in the kingdom and patience of Jesus Christ, was in the 
isle that is called Patmos, for the word of God, and for the testimony 
of Jesus Christ. I zvas in the Spirit on the Lord's day, and heard be- 
hind me a great voice, as of a trumpet." 

"In the isle that is called Patmos/' In its symbolic sense 
"Patmos" would denote withdrawal from material conscious- 
ness, or into a sense barren of thoughts and feelings of a 
fleshly order, i. e., withdrawal into spiritual consciousness, or 
the Holy Spirit. It seems to be used in the same sense as 
the word "wilderness" in chapter 12. The Authorized Ver- 
sion translates the Greek thlipsis in this text "tribulation", but 
its primary meaning is pressure. In the phrase "for the word 
of God", the xAoithorized Version gives the word "for" as a 
translation for the Greek dia, the meaning of which is indefi- 
nite, and has to be determined by the context. It is here used 
in the sense of "because of". So far as the author knows, all 
students and expositors of the Book have supposed that John 
was driven by persecution into Patmos, an island in the 
Mediterranean, or was exiled there by the government, on 
account of his stand for Christianity. The author is con- 
vinced, however, that the meaning of the verse is that the 
impulsion of the Christ-mind upon the consciousness of John 
drove him into the realm of Spirit. The verse would thus be 
better translated : 

"I, John, who' also am your brother and companion in the 
stress and ruling and patient persistence of the Christ-mind 
[the spirit of prophecy], zvas in the island called Patmos [that 
is, was in the Spirit], because of the zvord of God and the 
testimony of Jesus" [because of the impulsion of "the spirit 
of prophecy"]. 

Verse io "On the Lord's day". This does not refer to 
either the first or the seventh day of the week, but to the spir- 



48 REVELATION INTERPRETED I : 11 

itual consciousness ; so that the phrase evidently means, / was 
in the Spirit (with no reference to any particular time). "A 
great voice, as of a trumpet" , doubtless symbolizes the Holy 
Spirit, or the prophetic consciousness. 

Verse n "Saying, I am Alpha and Omega, the first and the last: 
and, What thou seest, zvrite in a book, and send it unto the seven churches 
which are in Asia; unto Ephesus, and unto Smyrna, and unto Pergamos, 
and unto Thyatira, and unto Sardis, and unto Philadelphia, and unto 
Laodicea." 

"I am the Alpha and Omega, the first and the last/' The 
sentence which these words translate does not occur in authori- 
tative Greek texts, and need not, therefore, be interpreted. 
However, in verse 17, the Christ is represented as declaring: 
"I am the first and the last." This evidently means, not that 
the Christ is "the beginning and the end", but the all-inclusive. 
The third verse of chapter 1 of John's Gospel might well be 
translated, All things came into being (or expression) in him 
(the Word, the Christ) ; and apart from him (that is, outside 
of him) nothing came into being (or expression). In Romans 
11 136, we read: "For of him, and through him, and to him, 
are all things." These, and numerous other passages of Scrip- 
ture, rightly translated and understood, teach that the Christ, 
the divine Word, is synonymous with the complete order of 
the divine manifestation. For instance, 1 Cor. 8 :6, translated 
in keeping with this thought, would read : "But to us there is 
one God, the Father, of whom are all things, and we in Him, 
and one Lord Jesus Christ, in (not "by") whom are all things, 
and we in him", The Greek preposition dia cannot be trans- 
lated "by" without forcing it out of its natural meaning, as the 
Authorized Version has undoubtedly done in this text, and 
in the one previously quoted from the Gospel of John, and also 
in Eph. 3 :g, which would better read, Who created all things 
in (Jesus) Christ. Col. 1 :i6 should read: For in (not "by") 
him were created all things. The Greek in this verse is 
"en autp", and the Revised Version translates the phrase "in 
him". 



I : 12, 13 SECTION I 49 

Verses 12, 13 And I turned to see the voice that spake with me. 
And being turned, I sazu seven golden candlesticks ; and in the midst 
of the seven candlesticks one like unto the Son of man, clothed with a 
garment down to the foot and girt about the paps with a golden girdle. 

''Seven golden candlesticks." Verse 20 informs us that 
these are "the seven churches', and the first clause of verse 13 
gives us to understand that the Christ-mind pervades (is "in 
the midst of) those churches. It has already been suggested 
that "the seven churches" are the human consciousness, con- 
sidered in the seven chief phases of its activity. Conclusive 
proof of this fact will appear in the discussion of chapters 2 
and 3. The nature of the churches and their relation to their 
"angels" may be represented succinctly as follows : 

The Churches and Their Angels 

The Church in Ephcsus is human consciousness in the attitude of 
Attention* and its Angel is the Christ-mind acting as Spiritual Aspira- 
tion, "Soul." 

The Church in Smyrna is human consciousness acting as Reason, and 
its Angel is the Christ-mind acting as Spiritual Reason, "Principle." 

The Church in Pergamos is human consciousness acting as Will, and 
its Angel is the Christ-mind as the Executive Mind, "Life." 

The Church in Thyatira is human consciousness acting as Intuition, 
and its Angel is the Christ-mind as Spiritual Intuition, Direct Cogni- 
tion, "Mind" 

The Church in Sardis is human consciousness acting as Love, and 
its Angel is the Christ-mind acting as divine Love, "Love." 

The Church in Philadelphia is human consciousness acting as Sense 
of Reality, and its Angel is the Christ-mind acting as Perception of 
Reality, "Truth" 

The Church of the Laodiceans is human consciousness as Sense of 
Substance, and its Angel is the Christ-mind acting as Perception of 
Substance, "Spirit." 

(With acknowledgment to Mr. James M. Pryse for suggestions in con- 
nection with the presentation above given, and to Mrs. Mary Baker Eddy for 
the terms in quotation marks.) 

*The use of capitals for the names of the mental equivalents of 
"the churches of Asia" is not intended to indicate that these mental 
equivalents are synonyms for deity, but indicates their relative im- 
portance. 



50 REVELATION INTERPRETED I : 14, 15 

From the absolute standpoint "Perception of Reality" and 
"Perception of Substance" are the same ; but in human experi- 
ence they are not coincident. For instance, the majority of 
mankind will admit that God is real, but it is hard to persuade 
most men that God (Spirit) is substance. So in analytical 
classification, that activity of the Christ mind which leads the 
human consciousness into the perception of substance should 
be distinguished from that activity which leads it into the per- 
ception of reality. But in the absolute all these seven activities 
of the Christ mind are one Mind. 

The Christ being "clothed with a garment down to his foot, 
and girt about the paps with a golden girdle", probably indi- 
cated him in a priestly office. One expositor has said that his 
wearing the girdle at the breasts, instead of at the waist, shows 
him as a priest engaged in active service rather than as merely 
ready for service. 

Verse 14 "His head and his hairs were white like zvool, as white 
as snozv; and his eyes were as a flame of fire." 

"His head and his hairs, white like wool, as white as 
snow" may indicate majesty and holiness, probably, also, eter- 
nity. "His eyes as a flame of fire" denote the power of the 
Christ, of Truth, to penetrate and search all hearts, and to 
uncover and destroy evil. 

Verse 15 "And his feet like unto fine brass, as if they burned in a 
furnace ; and his voice as the sound of many waters" 

"His feet like unto fine brass, as if they burned in a fur- 
nace" A literal rendering of the original Greek would read 
as follows : His feet like to chalko -lib anon, as it were melted 
in a furnace. Liddell and Scott's Greek Lexicon says that, 
although chalkos means specifically copper, it has the general 
meaning of metal. Libanos is the Greek name for "the frank- 
incense-tree", a gum tree. The word is certainly allied in 
derivation with the verb libazo, which means "to run out in 
drops", as that is the way that gum usually exudes from a tree. 
These facts indicate that this Greek phrase should be trans- 



1 : 16 SECTION I 51 

lated: His feet were like to metal which runs in drops, as 
though it had been melted in a furnace; and the metal referred 
to is evidently quick-silver, or mercury, which, among the 
Greeks, was held sacred to Hermes, the messenger of the gods, 
celebrated for his supposed swiftness in flight. This fact was, 
of course, perfectly familiar to John, and to practically all 
educated men of his time, since, as already indicated, the 
Greek language and literature were the source and avenue of 
practically all the culture of the known world of that time. 
Evidently, therefore, the reference here should be taken to 
indicate the swiftness or the omnipresence of the Christ, which 
thought is not adequately presented in the authorized transla- 
tion, "like unto fine brass, as if they burned in a furnace". 

"His voice as the sound of many waters" may indicate that 
he expresses the consciousness of the multitudes of the 
redeemed. In chapter 17:15, St. John defines "waters" as 
"peoples, and multitudes, and nations, and tongues". This 
interpretation would indicate the Christ as being the head of 
the true church and as being synonymous with the Holy Spirit. 

Verse 16 "And he had in his right hand seven stars: and out of his 
mouth went a sharp two-edged sword: and his countenance was as the 
sun shineth in his strength." 

His having "in his right hand seven stars" indicates his 
expression of the seven chief manifestations of divine Mind. 
The "sharp two-edged sword" going "out of his month" sug- 
gests the militant character of the truth in human conscious- 
ness, and its power to distinguish and separate between good 
and evil. It may also suggest the affirmation of truth and the 
denial of error, as the means of overcoming the latter. The 
former purifies the mind ; the latter destroys evil thoughts and 
manifestations.* 

*"This sharp sword, with two edges, which the saints 'joyful in 
glory' use, is the denial of the evil, or unreal, and the affirmation of 
the good, by means of which the human 'consciousness' is purified." — ■ 
"Life Understood," page 140. 



52 REVELATION INTERPRETED I : 17 



"His countenance as the sun shineth in his strength" doubt- 
less indicates the lordship, the over-ruling character and rank 
of the Christ. 

The fact that, in verses 13-16, nine phrases are employed 
in describing the Christ may be intended to indicate him as 
intuitively wise, the Greek equivalent of which, epistemon, 
(the sum of the numerical values of its letters being taken), 
represents the number 999. The seven phrases used in describ- 
ing the Christ in verses 5 and 6, might serve to indicate him as 
the crucified one, the sum of the numerical values of the letters 
of the Greek word stauros, meaning the cross, being JJJ. It 
is the more probable that something of this kind is implied, 
because St. John, in chapter 13 :i8, gives the symbolical numer- 
ical value 666 to "the beast", whose number, he says, "is the 
number of a man", evidently meaning material sense. The 
numerical value of the letters of the Greek he phren (the lower 
mind or the mind of fallen or mortal man), is 666.* 

Words of Encouragement and Command 

Verse 17 "And when I saw him, I fell at his feet as dead. And 
he laid his right hand upon me, saying unto me, Fear not; I am the 
first and the last." 

"And when I saw him, I fell at his feet as dead" . The 
effect of beholding the unveiled glory and power of the Christ 
upon one who still had anything of the mortal about him would 
be almost to destroy his mortal sense of life, much as darkness 
is destroyed when exposed to the light. "No man can look 
upon the face of God, and live". It was as when the children 
of Israel could not look upon the unveiled face of Moses, after 
he had been in the Mount with God, for the glory of his coun- 

* Note 1. — The author is indebted to Mr. Pryse for suggestions as to 
these numerical values. 

Note 2.— "VICARIVS FILII DEI," written over the Pope's chair, 
-foots up the number 666, if the sum of the Roman values of the letters 
is taken. The letters A, R. S, E and F have, of course, no numerical 
values. 



I : 18-20 SECTION I 53 

tenance, or as when Paul saw the Christ on his journey to 
Damascus, and "fell to the earth" (Acts 9:4), and was tem- 
porarily stricken blind. 

The phrase, "I am the first and the last" is interpreted 
under verse 8, quod vide. 

Verse 18 "I am lie that liveth, and was dead; and, behold, I am 
alive for evermore, Amen; and haze the keys of hell and of death." 
"I am he that liveth, and was dead; and am alive for ever more." 

At the start, the human consciousness is "dead to the 
truth," or the truth is "dead" to it ; but as the human conscious- 
ness becomes instructed in the truth in a thorough-going way, 
the truth "liveth" in that consciousness to which it formerly 
"was dead," and is "alive for evermore" therein. Jesus taught 
that "eternal life" is the knowledge of God (Truth) and of 
His Christ (reflected truth). Vide John 17:3. 

His having "the keys of hell and death" probably denotes 
his power to raise the dead, and save them; in other words, 
denotes that he has the solution of the problems of hell and 
death. 

Verses 19, 20 "Write the things which thou hast seen, and the 
things which are, and the things which shall be hereafter; the mystery 
of the seven stars which thou sawest in my right hand, and the seven 
golden candlesticks. The seven stars are the angels of the seven 
churches: and the seven candlesticks which thou sawest are the seven 
churches." 

These verses are more closely connected in thought with 
the next chapter than they are with the verses preceding ; and 
it would have been fortunate if chapter 2 had been made to 
begin with verse 19 of chapter 1. 

There are no chapter or verse divisions in the original manu- 
scripts. The divisions in the Authorized Version and other 
texts and translations depend upon personal judgment. 



54 NOTES BY THE READER 



CHAPTER II 

Messages to the Churches 

I. To the Church in Ephesus (2:1-8) 

Verse i "Unto the angel of the church of Ephesus write; These 
things saith he that holdeth the seven stars in his right hand, who walketh 
in the midst of the seven golden candlesticks." 

The message is introduced by the words: "Unto the angel 
of the church of Ephesus write." All of the translators and 
expositors with whom the author is acquainted endorse this 
general form of statement, and all seem to agree that the mean- 
ing is, that John is directed to write to the angel of the church 
of Ephesus; but there is no way in which this meaning can 
be made to harmonize with the rest of the letter. If the term 
"angel" be interpreted to mean the pastor of the church, then 
it is the pastor who is commended, rebuked, exhorted, etc. 
Moreover, it is doubtful whether the churches in St. John's day 
had pastors in the modern sense. If the term "angel" be taken 
to mean a manifestation of the Christ-mind, which the author 
understands to be the true interpretation, then it seems foolish- 
ness for the Christ to direct John to write to one of the phases 
of his (Christ's) own Mind. 

The Greek from which this sentence is translated is as fol- 
lows : 

"T9 aggelg t§ en Ephesg ekklesias grapson." 

The first three words are in the dative case, and there is no 
reason why this construction should not be what the gram- 
marians call "the dative of interest or advantage", and this is 
what the whole context (the final determining point in transla- 
tion, among different renderings which are grammatically cor- 
rect) requires. In this case, the rendering should be : 

55 



56 REVELATION INTERP RETED IIj__l 

For (in behalf of, as the amanuensis of) the Angel, write. 

The article "t§" is repeated after the noun, — a very com- 
mon Greek usage, to indicate emphasis by suggesting, though 
not actually making, repetition of the noun. 

It is also important to note that there is no article before 
ekklesias, as there would be if a specific church, instead of a 
symbolical one, were referred to. 

Taking these facts into consideration, the Christ is repre- 
sented as saying to John : 

For the Angel', the one of a church in Ephesus, write. 

The messages to all the other churches should doubtless 
commence in similar fashion, since some of the ancient Greek 
manuscripts retain the same form of expression for the intro- 
ductory sentence in the case of the letters to all of the seven 
churches. 

Other manuscripts, which are followed by the Westcott and 
Hort, Souter, and Oxford-Cambridge texts, change the third 
word of the sentence from "t§" to tes, or omit it altogether, in 
the case of the introductory sentences of the letters to some of 
the churches. For instance, these texts give : 

"Kai tg aggelg tes en Philadelphia ekklesias grapson," — 
rendered : 

And for the Angel of the church in Philadelphia, write. 

But there is no certainty that the manuscripts which give 
this reading, or the texts based upon them, are correct on this 
point. The apparent necessities of the context would indicate 
that they are not, and where the indications of the context are 
strong, the context should be the determining factor, not only 
on a question of translation, but in deciding a disputed ques- 
tion as to the text itself. 

The Christ, who holdeth within his power all the seven 
manifestations of divine Mind, and who is active in all phases 
or states of right consciousness, — this Christ, in the attitude 
of Spiritual Aspiration, which is the only true and right 
attitude, addresses the human consciousness in the attitude 
or activity of attention, and says to it : 



C'z:ii SECTION I 57 

COMMENDATION 

Verse 2 "I know thy works, and thy labor, and thy patience, and 
how thou canst not bear them which are evil: and thou hast tried them 
ivhich say they are apostles, and are not, and hast found them liars." 

"I know thy works, and thy labor and thy patience" ; that 
is, I know that, as attention, you are always busy, — always 
working, even harder than necessary if you worked rightly, 
and always persisting. "And how thou canst not bear them 
which are evil" ; that is, I know that, on general principles, thou 
canst not bear wicked men. It is true that the human con- 
sciousness always hates wickedness, and wicked people, in the 
abstract. For instance, no theatre audience will applaud the hero 
more warmly or hiss the villain more vigorously than one that 
is made up of criminals, if they be allowed to give free rein 
to the expression of their feelings. Well-nigh every person 
will tolerate meanness in himself, but is very much disinclined 
to tolerate it in anyone else. "And thou hast tried them which 
say they are apostles, and are not, and hast found them liars!' 
In the long run, the human consciousness detects frauds, and 
unmasks those who claim to be worthy spiritual teachers and 
guides, but are not. 

It is quite possible that "them ivhich are evil" and the false 
"apostles" here spoken of refer to activities of the false or 
"carnal" mind, which is "enmity against God", and which even 
the human consciousness finds it difficult to "bear" with, and 
which, sooner or later, it detects as being false witnesses. 

Verse 3 "And hast borne, and hast patience, and for my name's 
sake hast labored, and hast not fainted." 

The human consciousness has always toiled, with ceaseless 
patience, and often in the face of much persecution, for the 
truth, — both to discover truth, and to serve that which it 
believed to be the truth. 



58 REVELATION INTERPRETED n : 4-6 



REBUKE 

Verse 4 "Nevertheless I have somewhat against thee, because thou 
hast left thy first love." 

The human consciousness has always given some attention 
to Truth and Spirit ; but it ought to give all its attention to God, 
Spirit. Because it does not, it has left its first love, its primary 
duty. 

EXHORTATION AND WARNING 

Verse 5 "Remember therefore from whence thou art fallen, and re- 
pent, and do the first works; or else I will come unto thee quickly, and 
will remove thy candlestick out of his place, except thou repent." 

The human mentality is exhorted to take heed that it is 
apostate from its high duty, and to turn about and render its 
primary and only legitimate service. Then the human con- 
sciousness is warned that, unless it does give its attention to 
spiritual things, it will soon cease to be a light bearer, Christ 
is represented as saying that he will take its light away from 
it, but this form of statement is a concession to the human 
viewpoint. The light of life is never "taken" away from any 
man, or away from humanity as a whole ; but men, by failing 
to give their attention to the true light, gradually lose : sight of 
it, until finally they exclude themselves from it almost wholly. 

ADDITIONAL COMMENDATION 

Verse 6 "But this thou hast, that thou hatest the deeds of the 
Nicolaitanes, which I also hate." 

The Nicolaitanes were a sect, widely spread over Asia 
Minor in St. John's day, which practiced sexual immorality 
in many vile forms under the name of religion. There has 
always been a tendency among men to deify and worship the 
bodily senses and activities ; yet, on the whole, the human con- 
sciousness has always condemned and turned against such 
pseudo-religion and unclean practice. 



11:7 SECTION I 59 

FINAL EXHORTATION AND PROMISE 

Verse 7 "He that hath an ear, let him hear what the spirit saith 
unto the churches; To him that overcometh will I give to eat of the tree 
of life, which is in the midst of the paradise of God." 

"He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith 
unto the churches;" that is, let him who has sufficient discern- 
ment to understand the hidden meaning of this message, 
heed it. . 

"To him that overcometh will I give to eat of the tree of 
life, which is in the midst of the paradise of God!' The one 
who heeds this message, and overcomes the difficulty of giv- 
ing his attention to spiritual things only, or very largely so, is 
The Conqueror, who is named in Greek, Ho nikon. If the sum 
of the numerical value of these Greek letters is taken, the result 
is 1000, which, is therefore, the symbol of conquest, or com- 
pletion of labor. It is more than likely that, for this reason, 
the period of "a thousand years" is specified in chapter 20 as 
the period of the reign of complete harmony on the earth, — 
the so-called millennium. Only those who have proven to be 
conquerors can have part in the millennium. Over such, "the 
second death", the final destruction of evil, has no power, St. 
John tells us ; for there is nothing evil in them to be hurt or 
destroyed. He who conquers his attention, who brings it into 
the undivided service of God, is promised immortality, "the 
tree of life, which is in the midst of the paradise of God.' 3 



60 REVELATION INTERPRETED il:8 

II. To the Church in Smyrna (2:8-11) 

For the angel, the one of a church in Smyrna, write: 

"These things saith the first and the last, which ivas dead, and is 
alive." 

In the 8th chapter of John's Gospel, the Christ is repre- 
sented as speaking through Jesus of Nazareth, saying, "Before 
Abraham was, I am". He also said, "Lo, I am with you alway, 
even to the end of the world" (that is, to the end of material 
sense). The Christ is, before material sense appears, and is, 
after it disappears, — the eternal idea of the Father. He 
became incarnate in Jesus who was crucified, but the Christ 
was and is forever alive. 

The church in Smyrna seems to symbolize tfuman reason; 
and its angel is Spiritual Reason, reason which always takes 
Spirit at its premise. "Reason" is not to be here understood 
in the loose sense in which the word is sometimes employed, 
as being synonymous with the content of consciousness, but 
in the strict sense of being that mental faculty which draws 
conclusions from major and minor premises, stated or implied, 
Though human reason often takes material premises, — and, 
speaking analytically and strictly, it is not in the province of 
reason to choose its premises, but merely to act upon those 
premises presented to it by other mental faculties, — it is usually 
correct in the conclusions which it draws, granted that the 
premises are correct. So, in a sense, reason is as nearly 
infallible as any human faculty, and in its strict province of 
drawing conclusions from premises,, it has been very little cor- 
rupted. Accordingly, the church at Smyrna receives very lit- 
tle m the way of rebuke or warning from its Angel. 



II :9,10 SECTION I 61 



COMMENDATION 

Verse -g "I know thy works, and tribulation, and poverty, (but thou 
art rich) and 1 know the blasphemy of them which say they are Jews, 

and arc not, but arc the synagogue of satau " 

The reason is always at work ; it is put to many severe 
trials ; and, in so far as it is asked to work upon a material 
basis, it is poor indeed ; but it has the privilege of working 
upon a spiritual basis, and so is potentially rich. 

"Jews" are supposed to be "chosen people", those initiated 
into "the secret place of the Most High". Those who "say 
they are Jews, and are not", are those who pretend to be spir- 
itual initiates and true teachers, but are not, and so belong to 
the congregation of satan. 

EXHORTATION 

Verse 10 "Fear none of those things which thou shalt suffer: be- 
hold, the devil shall cast some of you into prison, that ye may be tried ; 
and ye shall have tribulation ten days: be thou faithful unto death, and 
I will give thee a crown of life." 

It has been already explained, in the Note on Chronology 
in the Introduction, that "ten days" refers to the period which 
it takes the sun to pass through the constellation "Draco", one 
of the minor signs of the zodiac. "Draco" means dragon, one 
of the apocalyptic symbols of "the devil and satan". Hence, 
"ten days" means dragon-time, — the period of the apparent 
ascendency of satan in the world of humanity. During this 
period, human reason will be partly in bondage to the claim 
that it must work from material premises, and so will be "in 
prison" ; nevertheless, in its technical sense, it is of God, cannot 
be destroyed, and need not fear anything. It will be faithful 
to its work, even to the death of the body, and beyond, and 
will have the "crown of life", — that is, right service and con- 
tinued being. 



62 REVELATION INTERPRETED n : n 



PROMISE 

Verse n "He that hath an ear, let him hear zvhat the Spirit saith 
unto the churches; He that oz'ercometh shall not be hurt of the second 
death." 

"He that overcometh shall not be hurt of the second death." 
The man who has learned to reason from spiritual premises, 
and from such premises only, has become so purified from 
error that the final destruction of error, "the second death" 
(Rev. 20:14), will not find anything in him to wrench away, 
and so he cannot be "hurt of the second death." 



II : 12, 13 SECTION I 63 

III. To the Church in Pergamos (2:12-17) 

For the Angel, the one of a church in Pergamos, write : 
"These things saith he which hath the sharp sword with hvo edges." 

Rightly understood, Will is the active manifestation of 
Mind, and it is also the executive faculty of the right reasoning 
of the human mind. Because of its executive character, this 
Angel, this manifestation of the Christ-mind, is represented as 
carrying the two-edged sword, symbolical of the militant power 
and of the victory of Truth. The sword is the offensive or 
fighting weapon, as distinguished from defensive armor. 

COMMENDATION 

Verse 13 "I know thy works, and where thou dwellest, even where 
Satan's seat is: and thou holdest fast my name, and hast not denied 
my faith, even in those days wherein Antipas was my faithful martyr, 
who zvas slain among you, where Satan dwelleth." 

The human will is ever at work. When, as is often the case, 
it is set up in opposition to divine Will, it is in a special sense 
the activity of satan. satan's chief agent. Hence, the human 
will is spoken of as dwelling "where satan's seat is". As we 
shall see later, the rule and authority set up by human will, 
when not in accord with God's will, is connoted or included 
in the symbols of the "black horse and his rider" (6:5, 6) and 
of "a beast, rising up out of the sea, having seven heads and 
ten horns, and upon his horns ten crowns, and upon his heads 
the name of blasphemy. . . . And the dragon [satan J 
gave him his power, and his seat, and great authority." 

The human consciousness tenaciously holds fast to the 
name of Truth, and does not deny, but always affirms, its belief 
in Truth, and that it is a follower of Truth, — which, to a large 
extent, it is ; but, even at its best, it has usually been in the con- 
dition of "certain disciples" in Ephesus, to whom Paul said, 
"Have ye received the Holy Spirit since ye believed? And 
they said unto him, We have not so much as heard whether 
there be any Holy Spirit." Among these professed followers 



64 REVELATION INTERPRETED n : 13 

of Christ, Truth, the Holy Spirit was dead, so far as they were 
concerned ; or, to be more exact, they were dead to the Spirit. 
Likewise, the human consciousness, though holding fast the 
name of Truth, and not denying faith therein, is usually dead 
to the spirit of Truth. Now, the spirit of Truth is the only 
wholly faithful witness of Truth. {Faithful witness is a more 
correct translation than "faithful martyr", the Greek word 
marturos meaning witness more often than martyr.) As usual, 
St. John did not choose to make his real meaning evident, 
unless the reader has the spiritual viewpoint from which he 
would know what St. John might be expected to mean under 
given circumstances. Accordingly, he does not speak of "the 
faithful witness" as the Holy Spirit, since this would make his 
meaning more evident, and might furnish a clew to the inter- 
pretation of the rest of the symbolism of these letters to the 
churches, which he intentionally disguised for reasons already 
named. So he here speaks of the faithful witness as 
"Antipas", with the evident intent of leading the uninitiated 
reader into a supposition that the witness to which he refers 
was some human- being in the church at Pergamos, who had 
suffered martyrdom. But historians have no record of any 
such person ; and, having discovered that "the churches in 
Asia" are themselves symbols of forms of mental activity, and 
that their Angels are symbols of forms of Mind-activity, we 
may naturally expect that the term "Antipas" refers, not to a 
person, but to another form of Mind-activity. Then the ques- 
tion arises, Why this particular word, — a word which occurs 
nowhere else in the Greek language so far as is known. To the 
author, it seems most likely that it is compounded from the 
Greek words anti and pas, which compound may be rendered 
in place of all, signifying that the "spirit of Truth" may stand 
as a "faithful witness" in place of all other manifestations of 
consciousness. The Holy Spirit is "slain" in human conscious- 
ness, whenever and wherever unregenerate human will is set 
up as a ruler and chief executive. So Antipas is spoken of as 
being "slain . . . where satan dwelleth". 



II : 14-17 SECTION I 65 



REBUKE 

Verses 14, 15 "But I haze a few things against thee, because thou 
hast there them that hold the doctrine of Balaam, who taught Balac to 
cast a stumbling block before the children of Israel, to eat things sac- 
rificed unto idols, and to commit fornication. So hast thou also them 
that hold the doctrine of the Nicolaitanes, which thing I hate." 

These verses are sufficiently self-interpretative, except to 
call attention to the fact that the human will, and men under 
its influence, are often found serving the lowest and most 
unworthy ends, instead of serving God. Also, the human con- 
sciousness often partakes of false doctrines as mental food, 
and thus feeds itself upon mental influences which have been 
offered in service to false gods (false standards of good). 
Thus does the human mentality, in symbolic language, 
"eat things sacrificed unto idols" , and thus, also, it manifests 
loyalty to that which is not God, and so it "commits fornica- 
tion/' Hence the need of this rebuke. 



EXHORTATION AND WARNING 

Verse 16 "Repent; or else I will come unto thee quickly, and will 
fight against them with the sword of my mouth." 

The human consciousness is here warned, that unless it 
turns from its evil practices, the Christ will quickly appear in 
a militant attitude, fighting against these evils with the utter- 
ance of truth ; and the human consciousness will suffer, if it is 
still clinging to evil. 

PROMISE 

Verse 17 "He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith 
unto the churches; to him that overcometh zvill I give to eat of the hid- 
den manna, and will give him a zvhite stone, and in' the stone a new 
name written, which no man knozveth saving he that receiveth it." 

He that "overcometh" is he that resists all temptation to 
exercise his will in opposition to the divine Will. He who 
succeeds in doing so will be given the privilege of mentally 



66 REVELATION INTERPRETED II : 17 

feeding upon spiritual truth, which is "the hidden manna" ' , 
and to know which is eternal life. "This is life eternal, that 
they might know thee, the only true God, and . . . Christ, 
whom thou hast sent." "Man shall not live by bread alone, 
but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God." 
"He that eateth of this bread [spiritual truth, the hidden 
manna] shall live forever." 

To the conqueror is also promised "a white stone/' In St. 
John's time, voting was done by means of white and black peb- 
bles, as it is still in many secret societies. To be given the right 
to use the voting pebble, was to invest with citizenship. The 
white pebble was the sign of an affirmative vote. Accordingly, 
the conqueror is here promised citizenship in the kingdom of 
God. 

When Jacob wrestled with the angel and prevailed, attain- 
ing the spiritual vision which he sought, he was given the 
new name "Israel". When Simon discerned that Jesus repre- 
sented the Christ, the Son of the living God, he was given the 
new name "Peter". Likewise, it appears, that to each of us, 
when we are "born again", and enter Christ's realm, will be 
given a new name ; for we have become "new creatures in 
Christ, old things have passed away." 

The voting pebble is the symbol of our character as citizens 
of the kingdom of God, and our "new name" is to be written 
in the voting pebble, the "white stone" ; that is, in our spiritual 
character. The true significance of the term "name" in such 
a connection is nature or character. For instance, when we 
are exhorted to "believe on the name of Christ", the meaning 
is that we are to have faith in the nature or character of Christ. 
When Christ directs us to rejoice because our names are writ- 
ten in heaven, the meaning is, that we are to rejoice because we 
have acquired the spiritual nature or character. So, the con- 
queror is given "a new name" automatically, by the fact that 
he has attained a new character, and by that same fact he auto- 
matically attains citizenship in the kingdom of God, symbol- 
ized by "the white stone." 



11:17 SECTION I 67 

Other interesting facts concerning the "white stone" are 
these : In various regions of the East, it was a custom for two 
people, entering into a covenant or other close relation with 
each other, to take a white pebble and engrave a word or name 
on it, and then break it in two so that a part of the word should 
be on each portion. Then one of the pieces of the stone was 
given to each party. Neither part of the stone, by itself, would 
show the whole word, and no two pieces of stone would match, 
or fit together perfectly, except the two parts of the one stone. 
Christ is represented as entering into this intimate kind of a 
covenant with his true followers. The Commentator Words- 
worth has this to say : 

"In ancient courts of justice, the acquittal of the criminal 
was declared by a majority of white stones, cast into the judi- 
cial urn. Christ, the Redeemer of the World, and judge of 
quick and dead, will pronounce the acquittal of him that over- 
cometh. The white stone is not only a stone of acquittal, but 
is a tessera of citizenship, and a passport of admission to the 
spiritual banquet of the life eternal in the heavenly Jerusalem. 
The name which Christ will give is a nezu name, promised by 
ancient prophecy (Isaiah 62:2), but revealed under the gospel 
by him who 'maketh all things new', and admits to the new 
Jerusalem, and enables to sing the new song, and it is a name 
which Christ says that no one knows except the receiver, per- 
haps with an allusion to the practice above noticed, by which 
it was provided that no one could use the 'tessera Jiospitali- 
tatis (an invitation to a social function), except the party to 
whom it belonged, and because no one can enter Christ's pres- 
ence by means of the merits of others ; everyone must give an 
account of himself to God, and be rewarded according to his 
own works." 



68 NOTES BY THE READER 






11:18 SECTION I 69 

IV. To the Church in Thyatira (2:18-29) 

For the Angel, the one of a church in Thyatira, write: 

"These things saith the Son of God, ivho hath his eyes like unto a 
flame of fire, and his feet are like fine brass" ("liquid metal," instead of 
"fine brass," is correct). 

The Angel of this church is the Christ-mind in its activity 
as Spiritual Intuition, Direct Cognition, Knozvledge without 
Reasoning Process, "Mind" . Its clear, powerful discernment 
is symbolized by "eyes like unto a flame of fire" , and its swift- 
ness in perceiving truth is symbolized by "feet like liquid 
metal" (mercury). The translation ''fine brass" is incorrect, 
and the mercury is symbolical of swiftness, as explained in the 
comment on verse 15, of chapter 1. 

The church in Thyatira seems to symbolize the human con- 
sciousness in its activity as intuition. The human mind gets 
direct evidence of many so-called physical facts and phe- 
nomena, without reasoning process, and without effort, and is 
prone to trust the validity of the evidence thus gained ; but, as 
manifest in the vast majority of persons, the human mind has 
little direct cognition of metaphysical realities, and is disposed 
not to trust the validity of the impressions which it does receive 
from the spiritual realm. However, there are some human 
mentalities which are strongly aware of receiving impressions 
which do not come either through the avenue of physical sense 
or of reasoning processes, and these mentalities are often 
strongly disposed to trust and to act upon the impressions thus 
received. In ordinary speech, such people are said to be 
"intuitive". The impressions which they get may be either 
with regard to physical facts, or with regard to the mental 
states or motives of others, or with regard to what should be 
done in a given situation, or with regard to absolute spiritual 
realities. 



70 REV ELATION INTERPRETED n \ 18 

Of course, the only true intuition is the perception of abso- 
lute metaphysical reality. On the human plane, what is called 
intuition is valuable and commendable in proportion as it 
grades up toward this absolute ideal, — in other words, in pro- 
portion as its activity is inspired and controlled through con- 
scious relation to and reliance upon the divine Mind. When 
the human faculty of intuition becomes a channel for impres- 
sions received through the subconscious and lower psychic men- 
tal realms, it is distinctly apostate from its "high calling of God 
in Christ Jesus."* 

*On the subject of direct perception of the states of mind of other 
persons, and of intuitive knowledge of events, past, present, or future, 
in ways that seem abnormal or out of the usual order to ordinary 
human consciousness, Mrs. Mary Baker Eddy says, in "Science and 
Health" (page 83, commencing at line 25) : "There is mortal mind-read- 
ing and immortal Mind-reading. The latter is a revelation of divine 
purpose through spiritual understanding, by which man gains the divine 
Principle and explanation of all things. Mortal mind-reading and im- 
mortal Mind-reading are distinctly opposite standpoints, from which 
cause and effect are interpreted. The act of reading mortal mind in- 
vestigates and touches only human beliefs . . . The ancient 
prophets gained their foresight from a spiritual, incorporeal standpoint, 
not by foreshadowing evil and mistaking fact for fiction, — predicting 
the future from a groundwork of corporeality and human belief. When 
sufficiently advanced in Science to be in harmony with the truth of being, 
men become seers and prophets involuntarily, controlled not by demons, 
spirits, or demigods, but by the ore Spirit. It is the prerogative of the 
ever-present, divine Mind, and of thought which is in rapport with this 
Mind, to know the past, the present, and the future." 

On page 128 of "Life Understood," Mr. Rawson presents as a test 
to distinguish between right and wrong intuitive action (sometimes 
called "psychic" when referring to direct but unusual knowledge of 
what is transpiring on the human plane) the following: "Whenever 
a person obtains abnormal results, he is bringing them about in the 
wrong way, if he at the same time loses any of his ordinary powers 
even for a moment or two" ; that is, if, in order to exercise abnormal 
perception, he goes into what is called a "trance." When Jesus read 
the thoughts of others, he was in full possession of his ordinary facul- 
ties, and that will be the case with us, whenever we are exercising "im- 
mortal Mind-reading." 



II : 18 SECTION I 71 

The use of intuition should in no sense be discouraged ; yet, 
thus far in human development, the exercise of this faculty is 
so liable to be clouded (as is the exercise of all other human 
faculties which are at the root expressions of divine Mind), 
and the presentations which it receives are so liable to come 
from lower rather than higher sources, that it is not wise to 
trust too absolutely what is intuitively received or felt, until 
the presentations have been tested in other ways. Whether a 
given impression is from Truth or from error can only be 
determined, thus far in human experience, by subjecting the 
mental presentation to careful intellectual examination and 
comparison, and more especially by the repeated test of prac- 
tical experience. If a given mental presentation, when trans- 
lated into the realm of action, proves, in the long account, to 
result in good, that fact may be taken to validate the percep- 
tion. On the other hand, if the perception, in the long run, 
proves practically worthless or harmful in the field of experi- 
ence, it is thus shown to have been a presentation through the 
counterfeit of true intuitive action, no matter how sure the per- 
son who received the impression may have been that it was of 
divine origin. For our present discussion, intuition may there- 
fore be defined as that activity of the human consciousness 
whereby it is convinced that certain things are true, even 
if it cannot give a clear intellectual account of the reason 
therefor. 

It may be said to feel that things are thus and so, even if it 
cannot, for the time being, prove it by an intellectual process. 
Humanity as a whole has held to the main facts of the Christ- 
teaching, and has acted to a considerable degree upon the 
assumption that they are facts, even when the conditions of 
human thought were such that it was impossible to prove, by 
intellectual processes, the validity of these facts. But the 
human consciousness has also accepted as true and worthy 
many things which are not true, and has done this in a pseudo- 
intuitive manner, without adequate intellectual investigation. 
Accordingly, in the exercise of its faculty of taking direct 



72 REVELATION INTERPRETED II : 19 

impressions, human consciousness deserves both commendation 
and rebuke. 

COMMENDATION 

Verse 19 "I know thy works, and charity, and service, and faith. 
and thy patience, and thy works; and the last to be more than the 
first" 

To perceive that this statement is a true one with regard to 
the human consciousness, one has only to consider how, by 
intuition, it has held to religious truth during the last three 
hundred years, at a time when human learning, vaunting itself 
as natural science, was saying that Spirit and strictly spiritual 
things are "unknowable", if not impossible. 

During this period when so many of the learned men of the 
world were promulgating materialistic doctrines, it is well 
known that women, as a class, were much more loyal to 
religion, and to the church as its institution, than were men as 
a class. The reason for this is to be found in the fact that 
women, as a class, are much more guided in their thought and 
activity by the intuitive faculty than are men, who are likely 
to be more controlled by the results of reasoning than they are 
by what is to be learned through direct cognition. Indeed, 
many men are inclined to doubt whether there is any such 
method of gaining knowledge that is at all trustworthy. But, 
more and more, intuition is coming to be recognized, even 
among men, as being the most important avenue of truth for 
the human consciousness. The author recently heard a prom- 
inent man say in a public address, that, when he was a young 
man, he used to scoff at a woman's "Because" ; but that, in 
later years, he had learned to attach more importance to this 
unreasoned reason than to the rationalistic processes which he 
had formerly regarded as the one reliable means of arriving at 
trustworthy conclusions. He said that, when a woman says, 
"Because", she is unable to state the reason for her conviction, 
simply because she arrived at it by direct cognition, and not 
by any reasoning process. However, the dictum which she 



II : 19 SECTION I 73 

announces, is, in general, not therefore less valid, but more 
so, than as though she knew, just at the time, what reasons 
could be marshalled in favor of such a dictum. 

As a matter of interest, the reader will note, that even the 
natural scientists are no longer asserting that Spirit and spir- 
itual things are either unknowable or impossible. In fact, most 
of them are now asserting that natural science, within its own 
domain, can never furnish an adequate interpretation of the 
universe or of the facts of human life or of ultimate reality, 
and that such interpretation must be looked for in the realm 
of metaphysics, that is, in the realm of religion. Natural 
science is not religious, and never can be ; but men who study 
natural science can also be students of religion and believers in 
religion, as most of the leading natural scientists now are. 
Natural science, at its best, can clear the way for men to 
become religious, through showing, as it has already done, that 
so-called knowledge on a material basis is not ultimate knowl- 
edge. 

The Angel prophesies that intuition, or direct perception 
of reality, is to play a larger part in human mental activity 
in the future than it has in the past, and the trend of events 
seems to bear out the prophecy. The gentleman above men- 
tioned said that it is his belief, that all the real knowledge, — 
that is, knowledge that stands the test of long continued experi- 
ence, — that mankind has ever gained, has been perceived, little 
by little, through direct cognition, — though it has been after- 
wards examined and verified through reason and rational 
processes. He also said, that he looks to intuition alone to 
point out the path of progress in the future. 



74 REVELATION INTERPRETED n : 20-23 

REBUKE 

Verses 20-23 "Notwithstanding I have a few things against thee, 
because thou sufferest that woman Jezebel, which calleth herself a 
prophetess, to teach and to seduce my servants to commit fornication, and 
to cat tilings sacrificed unto idols. And I gave her space to repent of 
her fornication; and she repented not. Behold, I will cast her into a 
bed and them that commit adultery with her into great tribulation, ex- 
cept they repent of their deeds. And I will kill her children with death: 
and all the churches shall know that I am he which scarcheth the reins 
and hearts; and I will give unto everyone of you according to your 
works;" 

Jezebel, in the Old Testament story, was the wife of Ahab, 
and was a wicked sorceress. It would not be amiss to read 
in this connection the accounts of this woman, which are given 
in the two books of Kings. In the Revelation, John uses her 
name to symbolize that activity of satan which tries to coun- 
terfeit, on the plane of human experience, the activity and 
works of spiritual intuition, thus deceiving the human con- 
sciousness, and leading it into harmful lines of activity. Among 
such harmful procedures are to be noted spiritualistic and 
mediumistic practices, and the activities of the so-called sub- 
conscious mind in general, when its agency is invoked to per- 
form unusual and occult works. The extremely emotional 
states of consciousness, resulting in conditions of unconscious- 
ness and trance, which are aroused in the meetings of some 
so-called religious sects, are also counterfeit activities, and are 
connoted under the symbol Jezebel. All who cultivate and par- 
take of such emotionalism and psychism "commit fornication", 
or become apostate from God, with this wicked activity of evil 
mentality. Those who do so are cast into beds of sickness, and 
endure great tribulation, and, as a rule, are brought to an 
earlier death, and are all the time sinking deeper into moral 
death. To know the truth through direct cognition is to eat 
the bread of life. The reading of the human mind through 
higher intuition, as when "Jesus knew their thoughts", is not 
to be condemned ; but to mentally feed on the teachings of false 
psychism is to "eat things sacrificed unto idols" . 



II : 24-29 SECTION I 73 

PROMISE 

Verse 24 "But unto you I say, and unto the rest in Thyatira. as 
many as have not this doctrine, and zvhich have not known the depths 
of satan, as they speak; I will put upon you none other burden." 

As intuition or direct cognition leads to the knowledge of 
God, and to the highest form of spiritual knowledge and prac- 
tice, so, by reversal, the attempted deification of the lower 
elements in the human mind, making them workers of wonders 
and miracles, and thus leading human thought away from God, 
the true source of men's instruction, healing, and regeneration, 
— this psychic belief and practice are the most misleading, and 
therefore the wickedest, of all forms of human activity, and are 
rightly characterized as "the depths of satan'. To those who 
keep free from such wicked activity it is promised that they 
will not have heavier burdens to bear than those they have 
borne already, — with the implication that it will prove other- 
wise with those who try to escape from the ills they already 
have by invoking the aid of this false prophetess, who is but 
the symbol for all those activities of the human mind known 
as hypnotism, mesmerism, mental suggestion, emotional trance, 
occultism, etc. 

EXHORTATION 

Verse 25 "But that zvhich ye have already, hold fast till I come." 

That is, such true knowledge as you have, hold on to until 
you attain full knowledge, — until you come into the experience 
of "the Spirit of truth . . . which shall guide you into all 
truth." 

PROMISE OF REWARD 

Verses 26-29 "And he that overcometh, and kecpeth my works 
unto the end, to him zvill I give pozver over the nations: and he shall 
rule them zvith a rod of iron; as the vessels of a potter shall they be 
broken to shivers: even as I received of my Father. And I zvill give 
him the morning star. He that hath an ear, let him hear zvhat the 
Spirit saith unto the churches." 

The victor in this line of endeavor attains the Christ-mind, 
which does have power over the nations, and will eventually 



76 REVELATION INTERPRETED II : 29 

rule them according to an inflexible law of truth, under which 
any resistance that they may offer will "be broken io shivers", 
as a piece of pottery is when it is struck with a rod. 

The clearness and beauty and purity of 'the Christ-mind, 
which the victor will attain, is well symbolized by "the morn- 
ing star." 



CHAPTER III 

Messages to the Churches (Continued) 
V. To the Church in Sardis (3:1-6) 

For the Angel, the one of a church in Sardis, write : 

"These things saith he that hath the seven Spirits of God, and the 
seven stars," 

The church in Sardis symbolizes the human consciousness 
in its activity as love ; and its Angel is the Christ-mind in its 
activity as divine Love. Love seems to be universally regarded 
as the one word which most fully characterizes God. Said St. 
John, "God is love". And St. Paul said, "Love is the fulfilling 
of the law." Hence, the Christ-mind, in its activity as Love, 
is said to have "the seven (all) Spirits of God, and the seven 
stars"; that is, it sums up in itself all spiritual ideas. The 
human consciousness naturally manifests but relatively little 
love that is really spiritual ; hence, in this phase of its activity 
the Angel finds little to commend, but starts the message with a 

REBUKE 

Verse i "I know thy works, that thou hast a name that thou livest 
and art dead." 

The human consciousness thinks that its natural affection, 
— the love for near relatives and friends, — is spiritual, and it 
thinks that it has love for God which is spiritual ; but the idea 
of God, or good, that it loves is usually much removed from 
a correct idea of God as pure Spirit. Hence, neither its love 
of God or men is really spiritual, though the human conscious- 
ness thinks it is. Plence, concerning love in the human con- 
sciousness it is said, "Thou hast a name (a reputation) that 
thou livest, and art (really) dead!' That which is not true or 
spiritual love is but false love, and this is really not love at all, 
just as false or counterfeit money is not money at all. If there 
is no spiritual love in human consciousness, then love is "dead" 
in it. 

77 



78 REVELATION INTERPRETED III: 2-4 



EXHORTATION 

Verses 2, 3 "Be watchful, and strengthen the things which remain, 
that are ready to die: for I have not found thy works perfect before 
God. Remember therefore how thou hast received and heard, and hold 
fast, and repent." 

In these words, recognition is made that there is some 
element of spiritual love in the human consciousness, and that 
it has received and is capable of understanding right instruc- 
tion in this activity. It is exhorted to nurture with great care 
such elements of spiritual love as it has, lest they die out, and 
to bear in mind such true instruction as it has received, and 
hold fast to it, and to "repent" or turn from its lower or fallen 
ways. 

WARNING 

Verse 3 "If therefore thou shalt not watch, I zvill come on thee as 
a thief, and thou shalt not know what hour I zvill come upon you." 

This may be taken to mean, that if the human consciousness 
is not faithful to spiritual love and to the service of higher 
things, it may seem to deaden what is called "the conscience" ; 
but when this is outraged to too great an extent, or neglected 
too long, it is liable to assert itself powerfully at some most 
unexpected time, and bring the individual, or a whole com- 
munity, into terrible remorse and mental upheaval, often result- 
ing in very painful consequences. 

COMMENDATION 

Verse 4 "Thou hast a few names even in Sardis which have not 
defiled their garments; and they shall walk with me in white: for they 
are worthy." 

There are a few of human kind who have not been gov- 
erned, at least predominantly, by a lower sense of love. These 
"have not defiled their garments/' They are pure, and so are 
said to walk with the Christ "in white/' 

There are some activities, reflected from God, within the 
human consciousness (though not in "mortal" consciousness) 



Ill: 5 SECTION I 79 

which are always pure. Probably the verse really refers to 
these, even more than to any particular human men or women. 
Historically, Sardis was a center of Venus-worship. There 
was a temple of Astarte there, another name for the Venus 
idea. This was doubtless the reason why Sardis was chosen to 
symbolize the love-activity of the human consciousness. If we 
knew all the peculiarities concerning the six other cities men- 
tioned, there might be an equally evident reason why they were 
selected as symbols. 

PROMISE 

Verse 5 "He that overcometh, the same shall be clothed in white 
raiment; and I will not blot out his name out of the book of life, but 1 
will confess his name before my Father, and before His. angels." 

He who succeeds in directing his love-activity into spiritual 
channels thereby acquires true or eternal consciousness or life, 
and his name or character cannot be removed from "the book 
of life" , but his name or character is "confessed" or present 
before the Father, and before, or in the presence of, all right 
ideas. 



80 NOTES BY THE READER 



Ill : 7-10 SECTION I 81 

VI. To the Church in Philadelphia (3:7-13) 

For the Angel, the one of a church in Philadelphia, write : 

''These things saith he that is holy, he that is true, he that hath the 
key of David, he that openeth, and no man shutteth; and shutteth, and 
no man openeth." 

This is a description of the Christ-mind in its activity as 
Perception of Reality and Authoritative Judgment. Such per- 
ception is holy and true, and it was "the key" by which David 
unlocked many of the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven. 
What this perception once opens or brings to human conscious- 
ness, no man can close : and what it "shutteth", or suppresseth 
as false, no man can make true. The church in Philadelphia 
symbolizes the human consciousness in its sense of reality, 
which is quite as often a false sense as a true one. 

COMMENDATION 

Verses 8-io "I know thy works: behold, I have set before thee an 
open door, and no man can shut it; for thou hast a little strength, and 
hast kept my zvord, and hast not denied my name. Behold, I zvill make 
them of the synagogue of Satan, which say they are Jews, and are not, 
but do lie; behold, I zvill make them to come and zuorship before thy 
feet, and to know that I have loved thee. Because thou hast kept the 
word of my patience, I also zvill keep thee from the hour of tempta- 
tion, which shall come upon all the zvorld, to try them that dwell upon 
the earth." 

The opportunity of the human consciousness to know reality 
is an ever-present one; it is "an open door, and no man can 
shut it! 3 The perception of reality has "a little strength" in 
human consciousness, and that consciousness has kept the 
"word" reality as a very important word, and has never denied 
the importance of that name or idea, but has always cher- 
ished it. 

"Jews" are supposed to be '''chosen people", those who have 
received, and have chosen to obey, spiritual instruction, and 
who, consequently, are fitted to be spiritual teachers. They 
are supposed to be perceivers of reality. If any pretend to be 



82 REVELATION INTERPRETED in : 11 

"Jews" in this sense, but are not, they are automatically 
excluded by divine law from the realm of harmony, and so 
are confined to the realm of discord, "satan" , and are made to 
be "of the synagogue of Satan". If such, through false pre- 
tenses, have gained exalted places among men, and have seemed 
to be in a position to scoff at and look down upon true spir- 
itual teachers, true perceivers of reality, these false teachers 
shall, nevertheless, in time be humbled, and shall be brought 
to the feet of the true teachers for instruction and aid. Very 
often today those who hold high places in the estimation of 
men on the basis of a teaching about reality which is untrue 
fall into sickness which they are unable to cure, and then 
resort to those who have a true perception of reality for aid, 
and receive the same. 

Those who hold to the true sense of reality w T ill be safely 
kept in the hour of trial, which is constantly coming in the 
world of human experience, putting to the test those who 
dwell in material sense, the false sense of reality. These do 
not safely abide the test, but have to be "converted" to a true 
sense of reality, before they can gain harmony. 

EXHORTATION 

Verse n ''Behold, I come quickly: hold that fast which thou hast 
that no man take thy crown." 

The Christ-mind as Perception of Reality does "come 
quickly' to human consciousness, — so "quickly", that it is 
always present, even though unrecognized. The true sense 
would be better conveyed, perhaps, by the words, I come 
living. The idea is the same as in the case where the Christ 
is represented as coming "to judge the quick (living) and the 
dead." The perception of that which is real comes to the 
human mentality "by quickening". 

The human consciousness is exhorted to hold fast to so 
much perception of reality as it has, in order that its reward be 
not taken away. 



Ill : 12 SECTION I 83 



PROMISE 

Verse 12 "Him that overcometh will I make a pillar in the temple 
of my God, and he shall go no more out: and I will write upon him the 
name of my God, and the name of the city of my God, which is new 
Jerusalem, which comcth dozen out of heaven from my God: and I will 
write upon him my new name." 

He who gradually gains the perception of reality becomes, 
in the measure that he does so, a consciousness which is estab- 
lished in Truth and good, a part and parcel of the larger 
Christ-consciousness, and is included in humanity's spiritual 
consciousness worshiping God, which is the true church or 
temple, in which he becomes a pillar, and outside this spir- 
itual consciousness, after he has entered in, he goes no more. 
Being borne into this higher and true sense of reality, he is 
"born again", and becomes, more and more, u a new creature 
in Christ", and gradually receives a new nature, a "nezv 
name", which is the name or character of "the city of God" , 
and this is the spiritual consciousness, the "new Jerusalem", 
a quality of consciousness "which cometh down out of heaven 
from God." 



84 NOTES BY THE READER 



Ill : 14, 15 SECTION I 85 

VII. To the Church of the Laodiceans (3:14-22) 

For the Angel, the one of a church in Laodicea, write : 

"These things saith the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the be- 
ginning of the creation of God." 

This is a description of the Christ-mind in its activity as 
Perception of Substance. The true sense of substance, the 
perception of substance as Spirit instead of as matter, is the 
most difficult of all attainments for the human mentality ; 
and so this activity of the Christ-mind, this angel of the 
human consciousness, is spoken of as "the Amen' ; that is, 
the final. This angel is also a "faithful and true zvitness." 
Since the creation of God must spring from substance, and 
since substance really is Spirit, the Christ-mind as Spirit is 
spoken of as "the beginning (the source) of the creation of 
God." The word arche may be correctly translated as "ruler", 
"over-lord", as well as "beginning". The church of the Lao- 
diceans symbolizes the human consciousness in its activity as 
sense of substance. The human mentality has less of true 
perception, is less what it ought to be, in this activity than in 
any of the others mentioned. Hence, the church of the Lao- 
diceans receives no commendation, but only rebuke, warning, 
exhortation, and a promise. 

REBUKE 

Verse 15 "I know thy works, that thou art neither cold nor hot: 
I would thou wert cold or hot." 

The human consciousness is disposed to recognize both 
Spirit and matter as substance, and thus tries to serve two 
masters. It makes the ridiculous and self-defeating blunder 
of trying to render mental allegiance to two contradictory 
senses of substance at the same time, — in other words, tries 
to call both of two diametric opposites "real." Lukewarm 
water is nauseating, while hot water and cold water are not. 
The mental attitude of the thorough-going materialist, who 



86 REVELATION INTERPRETED m : 16-20 

affirms that matter is the only substance, is more respectable 
and tolerable from a logical standpoint than is the attitude of 
those who affirm that both Spirit and matter are real. 

WARNING 

Verse 16 "So then because thou art lukewarm and neither cold nor 
hot, I will spezu thee out of my mouth." 

Such vacillating, divided, illogical mental allegiance or 
service is automatically rejected from the Christ-mind, and so 
is remanded to the realm of discord. 

EXHORTATION 

Verses 17-20 "Because thou sayest, I am rich, and increased with 
goods, and have need of nothing; and knozvest not that thou art 
wretched, and miserable, and poor, and blind, and naked; I counsel 
thee to buy of me gold tried in the fire, that thou mayest be rich; and 
white raiment, that thou mayest be clothed, and that the shame of thy 
nakedness do not appear; and anoint thine eyes with eyesalve, that 
thou mayest see. As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten: be zealous 
therefore, and repent. Behold, I stand at the door, and knock: if any 
man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come unto him, and will 
sup with him, and he with me." 

The human consciousness thinks it is rich in its sense of 
matter under various pleasing forms, and is inclined to think 
that it has no other need than matter, if it can have enough 
of it, of the right kind. It does not appreciate that true riches 
are desirable states of consciousness, — namely, love, joy, and 
peace, that these can be obtained only from Spirit, God, and 
that, lacking these, it is "zuretched, and miserable, and poor, 
and blind, and naked", no matter how many material ''goods", 
so-called, it may have. The Christ-mind counsels the human 
consciousness to obtain from it, as Spirit, that sense of sub- 
stance and good which neither fire nor any other agency can 
destroy, that it may indeed be rich ; and it counsels the human 
consciousness to robe itself in righteousness, which is to be 
obtained from Spirit, not from matter, that it may be truly 



Ill : 21 SECTION I 87 



clothed. Otherwise, to a discerning sense, the shame of its 
nakedness will appear, no matter how fine the material rai- 
ment. Often ones sees a woman whose body is carefully 
clothed with fine raiment; but the nakedness of her irritability, 
fretfulriess, fearfulness, frivolity, impurity, uncharitableness, 
and the like, lays perfectly open to any beholder. She needs 
"white raiment, that she may be clothed, and that the shame 
of her nakedness do not appear." The white robe of the 
truth will not merely cover up such mental poverty and wick- 
edness, but will destroy them. The understanding of Spirit 
as substance is the "eye-salve" with which we should anoint 
our mental vision, in order that we may be able to see truly. 
The true perception of substance, including the perception 
of all good, is constantly knocking at the door of every man's 
consciousness. It is always at hand, ready to be learned, just 
as is the multiplication-table. If any man will open the door 
of his consciousness, by divesting his mind of preconceived 
false opinions, and by becoming teachable as a little child, all 
truth and good will come into his consciousness and experi- 
ence, and make itself at home with him. 

PROMISE 

Verse 21 "To him that ovcrcometh will I grant to sit with me in 
my throne, even as I also overcame, and am set dozen zvith my Father 
in his throne.' 1 

The Christ manifests the authority of God, and he who 
conquers through the Christ-mind shares the authority of the 
Christ. 



NOTES BY THE READER 






A REVISED TEXT AND SUGGESTIVE 
PARAPHRASE 

If the author's earnest study of the Apocalypse in the light 
of the Principle and teaching of Christian Science, coupled 
with a critical examination of the fundamental sources of 
knowledge about the Book, has availed anything, it has done 
so, first of all, in giving a more accurate sense of the Greek 
text at certain points, and a better translation of that text, 
both at those points where changes in the Greek text have 
been shown to be necessary, and at certain other points where 
the sense of the Greek has not been correctly apprehended by 
many translators. It therefore seems to the author that it is 
due those who have carefully perused his rather voluminous 
Interpretative Notes, and who have satisfied themselves that 
the positions assumed on points of text and translation are 
well taken, that the results of the work along this line should 
be summed up in a presentation of an English text or transla- 
tion which embodies the interpretative conclusions at which 
we have arrived. In attempting to meet this need, the author 
has before him the choice of amending existing translations, 
or of making a practically new one. Compared with the work 
of interpretation w T hich is presented in this book, the labor of 
making a new translation would not be great, but while the 
changes in translation which have been noted are of vital 
importance, they are few in number, and do not seem to call 
for an addition to the already rather numerous modern trans- 
lations, or to warrant asking the reader to consider the Apoca- 
lypse in a literary dress different from that with which he is 
reasonably familiar, except at such points as may be necessary. 

Accordingly, the author has decided to present in this 
volume the Revised Version of the Apocalypse, amending 
words, phrases, and clauses where necessary, and clearly indi- 

89 



90 REVELATION INTERPRETED 

eating the portions thus amended by italicizing them, and 
then presenting in parentheses the portions of the text of the 
Revised Version for which emendations are substituted. 

It also seems due to the faithful reader of these Notes, 
who has taken the time to study them with care, that there 
should be presented in brief compass, and in a form for ready 
reference, the results of this effort at interpretation in a state- 
ment essentially as compact as the text itself. Thus the 
student, when he so desires, can quickly turn, when he wishes 
to refresh his memory, to the plain, condensed interpretation 
of any given verse, — having previously satisfied himself as 
to the correctness of the interpretation by a careful study of 
the extended Notes which were presented for his considera- 
tion first of all. 

Such a condensed interpretation, the author here presents 
in the form of a "Suggestive Paraphrase", printed, for the 
convenience of the reader, parallel with the amended transla- 
tion upon which it is based. 

This paraphrase is not to be taken dogmatically, nor is it 
to be considered the final word as to the best interpretation of 
any given text. The author could have paraphrased many 
verses in quite a different wording, which would have con- 
veyed about the same idea, and perhaps equally well. No 
doubt the interpretation, or the form of expression, can be 
improved at various points, and readers are free to exercise 
their thought to this end. The author would be especially 
glad of any suggestions which anyone may have to offer. The 
paraphrase is intended to be just what is indicated in the title, 
suggestive, with the hope that it may stimulate thought and 
inquiry with regard to a portion of the Scriptures, the mean- 
ing of which seems obscure to the great body of Bible readers, 
but which is very rich in practical spiritual teaching. 

The paraphrase is not offered as a substitute for the orig- 
inal, but as a help in adapting Jewish modes of thought and 
figures of speech to modern western idioms and forms of 
expression, thus rendering the original more easily under- 



TEXT AXD PARAPHRASE 91 

stood. When the original can be read under standingly , it is 
much more poetic, vivid, interesting and moving than this 
paraphrase or any other modern statement of the same ideas 
can be. It is hoped that the readers of the paraphrase will 
read the original, not less but more frequently than formerly, 
and it is confidently expected that this will be the result. With 
respect to the importance of its subject matter, its marvelous 
insight into deep and hidden things, its practical value when 
understood, and withal its literary excellence and brilliancy, 
it is doubtful if another human document of equal length can 
compare with the Revelation of St. John the Divine. 

Before beginning to read the paraphrase, the student is 
requested to again refer to Note 5, of the Introduction, 
entitled: " Adherence to Principle". The points to be spe- 
cially borne in mind are, that the paraphrase will endeavor 
to avoid representing God as knowing evil, or as consciously 
approaching or dealing with mortal sense. The issue is wholly 
confined to "the suppositional warfare between truth and 
error", as Mrs. Eddy has phrased it (S. & H., p. 288), between 
the right idea and false belief within the arena of human con- 
sciousness. 



PROLOGUE 



Chapter I 



Amended Revised Version 

A (The) Revelation from 
(of) Jesus Christ, which 
God gave him, to shew unto 
His (his) servants the 
things which must shortly 
be revealed (come to pass) : 
and he sent and signified it 
by His (his) angel unto 
His (his) servant John; 
who bare witness of the 
word of God, and of the 
testimony of Jesus Christ, 
even of all things that he 
saw. Blessed is he that 
readeth, and they that hear 
the words of the prophecy, 
and keep the things which 
are written therein : for the 
time is at hand. 



Suggestive Paraphrase 
A revelation of the things made 
known in the prophetic consciousness, 
which emanates from God, to show 
unto His servants the things which 
must quickly unfold to them : and He 
revealed these things in images and 
symbols to His servant John ; who 
bare record of the Christ of God, 
and of the things made known by the 
mediatorial consciousness, even of all 
things that he saw. Blessed are they 
that read with understanding the 
words of the prophecy, and keep in 
mind and are governed by the things 
written therein : for to them the time 
is at hand. 



SECTION I 
MESSAGES TO THE SEVEN CHURCHES 

Chapter I. Introductory 
Greeting to the Churches 



Amended Revised Version 
4 John to the seven 



churches which are in Asia : 
Grace to you and peace, 
from him which is and 
which was and which is to 
come ; and from the seven 
Spirits which are before his 
throne ; and from Jesus 
Christ, who is the faithful 
witness, the firstborn of the 
dead, and the ruler of the 
kings of the earth. • 



Suggestive Paraphrase 
Greetings from John to humanity 
in its every form of mental activity : 
May you have grace from the eternal 
God; and from all the manifestations 
of infinite Mind ; and from the spirit 
of prophecy, which is the faithful wit- 
ness, and the only order of conscious- 
ness which has made a demonstration 
over death, and which is the rightful 
lord of all the powers of the world. 
Ascription of Praise 



Unto him that loveth us, 
and loosed us from our sins 
by his blood ; and he made 
us to be a kingdom, to be 
priests unto his God and 
Father ; to him be the glory 
and the dominion for ever 
and ever. Amen. Behold, he 
cometh with the clouds ; and 



Unto the impersonal Christ whom 
we love and who cleanses us from 
our sins through his life of love ; and 
hath made us a kingdom of priests 
in the service of God, his Father ; to 
him be ascribed glory and dominion 
forever and ever. Amen. Behold, he 
is to be exalted in the mental realm ; 
and all men must take account of 

93 



94 



REVELATION INTERPRETED 



I : 8-15 



Amended Revised Version 
every eye shall see him, and 
they which pierced him ; and 
all the tribes of the earth 
shall mourn over him. Even 
so, Amen. 

I am the Alpha and the 
Omega, saith the Lord God, 
which is and which was and 
which is to come, the Al- 
mighty. 



Suggestive Paraphrase 
him, even those which have sought 
to destroy him, and this Christ-mind 
will cause all the/ dwellers in material 
sense to mourn. So let it be. 

I am the origin and the completion, 
the summation of all things, saith the 
Lord God, the everlasting and Al- 
mighty. 



The Coming of the Message 



9 I John, your brother and 
partaker with you in the 
stress and over-ruling and 
patient persistence which are 
in Jesus Christ (tribulation 
and kingdom and patience 
which are in Jesus), was in 
the isle that is called Pat- 
mos, for the word of God 

io and the testimony of Jesus. 
I was in the Spirit on the 
Lord's day, and I heard be- 
hind me a great voice, as 

ii of a trumpet saying, What 
thou seest, write in a book, 
and send it to the seven 
churches ; unto Ephesus, 
and unto Smyrna, and unto 
Pergamos, and unto Thy- 
atira, and unto Sardis and 
unto Philadelphia, and unto 
Laodicea. 



I John, who am the brother of you 
who are servants of God, am par- 
taker with you in the stress and com- 
pulsion and unremitting service which 
are characteristic of the prophetic 
consciousness in its service of God. 
I was in exile from material sense, 
because of the demands of truth and 
of the spirit of prophecy; and 1 was 
in spiritual consciousness in the time- 
less world, the Lord's day, and I un- 
expectedly received a great spiritual 
impulse directing me, What thou 
perceivest, write in a book, and ad- 
dress it to the human consciousness 
as expressed in Attention, Reason, 
Will, Intuitive Sense, Feeling, Sense 



of Reality, and Sense of Substance. 
A Vision of the Redeemer 

[2 And I turned to see the 
voice which spake with me. 
And having turned I saw 
seven golden candlesticks ; 

13 and in the midst of the can- 
dlesticks one like unto a 
son of man, clothed with a 
garment down to the foot, 



and girt about at the breasts 
with a golden girdle. And 

14 his head and his hair were 
white as white wool, white 
as snow ; and his eyes were 

15 as a flame of fire; and his 
feet like unto liquid metal 
(burnished brass), as if it 
had been melted (refined) 



And I examined the source and 
character of the spiritual impulse di- 
recting me : and as I did so, I beheld 
seven mental light-bearers ; and their 
ruler, which pervaded them, was the 
Christ-mind, completely robed in 
righteousness and engirt with holi- 
ness, as a High-Priest to God. Maj- 



esty and exceeding holiness are be- 
held of all who' perceive this Christ- 
mind ; and it manifests unlimited pene- 
tration and ability to discern between 
good and evil ; and it is character- 
ized by exceeding swiftness, even om- 
nipresence ; and its utterance is the 
voice of all wisdom, or ever the 
world was. 



I : 16-11 : 3 



TEXT AND PARAPHRASE 



95 



Amended Revised Version 
in a furnace ; and his voice 
as the voice of many waters. 
1 6 And he had in his right hand 
seven stars : and out of his 
mouth proceeded a sharp 
two-edged sword : and his 
countenance was as the sun 
shineth in his strength. 



Suggestive Paraphrase 
And from this Christ-mind pro- 
ceed seven great lights : also the word 
of Truth judging the world and smit- 
ing error : and its glorious manifesta- 
tion is commanding and prevailing, 
enlightening the world. 



Words of Encouragement and Command 



ij And when I saw him, I 
fell at his feet as one dead. 
And he laid his right hand 
upon me, saying, Fear not ; 
I am the first and the last, 

18 and the Living one ; and I 
was dead, and behold, I am 
alive for evermore, and I 
have the keys of death and 

19 of Hades. Write therefore 
the things which thou saw- 
est, and the things which 
are, and the things which 
shall come to pass here- 

20 after ; the mystery of the 
seven stars which thou 
s a west in my right hand, 
and the seven golden can- 
dlesticks. The seven stars 
are the angels of the seven 
churches : and the seven 
candlesticks are seven 
churches. 



And I was stunned by the charac- 
ter and magnitude of the vision. But 
the prophetic consciousness laid hold 
upon me with the impulsion of its 
inspiration and authority, saying, 
Fear not ; I am the world-enduring 
mediatorial Christ, dead to mortal 
sense, and yet forever alive, and 
with me is the solution of the prob- 
lems of death and hell. Write there- 
fore the things that you perceive, 
both those that are now in evidence 
and those that must come to pass 
hereafter. The seven candlesticks 
are emblematical of the seven chief 
activities of human sense, which are 
to receive instruction from the seven 
corresponding activities of the media- 
torial Christ-mind, which are sym- 
bolized as seven stars. 



Chapter II. Messages to the Churches 



The Letter to 

r For (To) the angel of a 
(the) church in Ephesus 
write : These things saith 
he that holdest the seven 
stars in his right hand, he 
that walketh in the midst of 
the seven golden candle- 

2 sticks : I know thy works, 
and thy toil and patience, 
and that thou canst not bear 
evil men, and didst try them 
which call themselves apos- 
tles, and they are not, and 

3 didst find them false ; and 



a Church in Ephesus 

In behalf of the Christ-mind as 
Spiritual Aspiration address instruct- 
ively human consciousness in its ac- 
tivity as Attention. 

These things saith the Christ-idea, 
who is the light-bearer of the world 
and is active in all phases of the 
human consciousness: The human 
mentality toils long and patiently, and 
will not long give attention to men 
known to be evil, and, in the long ac- 
count, detects religious impostors. It 
is a seeker after truth, and will pa- 
tientlv bear all things for the sake of 



96 



REVELATION INTERPRETED 



11:4-11 



Amended Revised Version 
thou hast patience and didst 
bear for my name's sake, 
and hast not grown weary. 

4 But I have this against 
thee, that thou didst leave 

5 thy first love. Remember 
therefore from whence thou 
art fallen, and repent, and 
do the first works ; or else 
I come to thee, and will 
move thy candlestick out of 
its place, except thou repent. 

6 But this thou hast, that thou 
hatest the deeds of the Nic- 
olaitans, which I also hate. 

7 He that hath an ear, let him 
hear what the Spirit saith to 
the churches. To him that 
overcometh, to him will I 
give to eat of the tree of 
life, which is in the Para- 
dise of God. 

The Letter to 

8 And for (to) the angel 
of a (the) church in Smyr- 
na write : 

These things saith the 
first and the last, which was 

9 dead, and lived again; I 
know thy tribulation, and 
thy poverty (but thou art 
rich), and the blasphemy of 
them which say they are 
Jews, and they are not, but 
are a synagogue of Satan. 

10 Fear not the things which 
thou art about to suffer : be- 
hold, the devil is about to 
cast some of you into pris- 
on, that ye may be tried; 
and ye shall have tribula- 
tion ten days. Be thou 
faithful unto death, and I 
will give thee the crown of 

ii life. He that hath an ear, 
let him hear what the Spirit 
saith to the churches. He 
that overcometh shall not be 
hurt of the second death. 



Suggestive Paraphrase 
what it believes to be truth; but it 
does not know that Spirit and its 
ideas are the only truth, and so it is 
apostate from its prime allegiance. It 
is exhorted to seek to serve Spirit 
only, lest, if it continue to give at- 
tention to material things, it should 
suddenly come into judgment, and 
lose such perception of truth as it al- 
ready has, thus ceasing to be a light- 
bearer. 

But this is in the favor of the 
human consciousness as a whole, that 
it hates indecent and licentious prac- 
tices. He that has sufficient spiritual 
discernment, let him understand and 
heed what the Spirit says to human 
sense. To him who overcometh ig- 
norance and evil the Christ will give 
that understanding of Truth which is 
eternal life in the midst of all the 
joy and harmony of God. 
a Church in Smyrna 

And for the Christ-mind as Prin- 
ciple address instructively human 
consciousness in its activity as Rea- 
son. 

These things saith the once incar- 
nate Christ which triumphed over 
death. I know the trials and the pov- 
erty of attainment of human reason 
(though when governed by Principle 
it is rich), and I know the blasphem- 
ous teachings of those who claim to 
reason according to Spirit, but do 
not, serving satan instead. Reason 
need not fear the outcome of any of 
the trials which are before it, though 
satan will hold it partially in bond- 
age in trying to totally enslave it, 
and its testing time will last during 
the whole period of satanic ascend- 
ency. Be faithful to God, even if 
you are tried to the point of seem- 
ing death, and I will give you eternal 
life. He that hath sufficient spiritual 
discernment, let him understand and 
heed what the Spirit saith to human 
sense. He that overcometh evil shall 
not be hurt during the final destruc- 
tion of evil which is called the second 
death. (See 20:14.) 



II : 12-17 



TEXT AND PARAPHRASE 



97 



The Letter to a Church in Pergamum 



Amended Revised? Version 

12 And for (to) the angel 
of a (the) church in Per- 

13 gamum write : These things 
saith he that hath the sharp 
two-edged sword : I know 
where thou dwellest, even 
where Satan's throne is: 
and thou holdest fast my 
name, and didst not deny 
my faith, even in the days 
of Antipas my witness, my 
faithful one, who was killed 
among you, where Satan 

14 dwelleth. But I have a few 
things against thee, because 
thou hast there some that 
hold the teaching of Ba- 
laam, who taught Balak to 
cast a stumbling block be- 
fore the children of Israel, 
to eat things sacrificed to 
idols, and to commit forni- 

15 cation. So hast thou also 
some that hold the teaching 
of the Nicolaitans in like 

16 manner. Repent therefore ; 
or else I come to thee 
quickly, and I will make war 
against them with the 

17 sword of my mouth. He 
that hath an ear, let him 
hear what the Spirit saith 
to the churches. To him 
that overcometh, to him will 
I give of the hidden manna, 
and I will give him a white 
stone, and upon the stone 
a new name written, which 
no one knoweth but he that 
receiveth it. 



Suggestive Paraphrase 
And for the Christ idea as Execu- 
tive Intelligence address instructively 
human consciousness in its activity 
as Will. 

These things saith the mediatorial 
Christ which is the executive of 
Truth : The human will is often the 
chief agent of satan when in the 
service of selfish desire and ambi- 
tion ; yet the human mind has always 
held fast the name of truth, and, on 
the whole, has not denied the letter 
of the Christ-teachings, even when 
it was wholly lacking in the Spirit 
thereof, — the Holy Spirit, which is 
the only true and faithful witness. 
However, the human will deserves 
rebuke because it tolerates and fos- 
ters mental tendencies and disposi- 
tions to sexual promiscuousness, to 
take part in the practices of me- 
diumship and divination and the wor- 
ship of false gods, and to depart 
from the true faith. It also tolerates 
and does not sternly cast out the vile 
thoughts and practices of mortal 
mind. Unless the human mind re- 
pents of such looseness of thought 
and conduct, it will come suddenly 
and unexpectedly into judgment and 
suffering. He that hath sufficient 
spiritual discernment, let him under- 
stand and heed what the Spirit saith 
to human sense. To him that over- 
cometh sin I will give the under- 
standing of Truth which is hidden 
from the world ; and I will give him 
citizenship in the Kingdom of God 
and a new character, which is spirit- 
ual, which only those who gain it can 
know and appreciate. 



98 



REVELATION INTERPRETED n : 18-27 



The Letter to a Church in Thyatira 



Amended Revised Version 

18 And for (to) the angel of 
a (the) church in Thyatira 
write : 

These things saith the 
Son of God, who hath his 
eyes like a flame of fire, 
and his feet are like unto 
liquid metal (burnished 

19 brass) : I know thy works, 
and thy love and thy faith 
and ministry and patience, 
and that thy last works are 

20 more than the first. But I 
have this against thee, that 
thou sufferest the woman 
Jezebel, which calleth her- 
self a prophetess; and she 
teacheth and seduceth my 
servants to commit forni- 
cation, and to eat things 

21 sacrificed to idols. And I 
gave her time that she 
should repent ; and she will- 
eth not to repent of her 

22 fornication. Behold, I do 
cast her into a bed, and 
them that commit adultery 
with her into great tribula- 
tion, except they repent of 

23 her works. And I will kill 
her children with death ; 
and all the churches shall 
know that I am he which 
searcheth the reins and 
hearts : and I will give unto 
each one of you according 

24 to your works. But to you 
I say, to the rest that are in 
Thyatira, as many as have 
not this teaching, which 
know not the deep things 
of Satan, as they say ; I 
cast upon you none other 

25 burden. Howbeit that which 
ye have, hold fast till I 

26 come. And he that over- 
cometh, and he that keeoeth 
my works unto the end, to 
him will I give authority 

27 over the nations : and he 



Suggestive Paraphrase 
And for the mediatorial Christ as 
Spiritual Intuition address instruc- 
tively human consciousness in the 
exercise of its Intuitive Faculty. 

These things saith the Christ-mind, 
which has clear, penetrating discern- 
ment, and is swift in carrying mes- 
sages of wisdom : The human con- 
sciousness through its intuitive sense 
has held to and kept alive in the 
human realm the word of Truth 
with much labor and love and faith 
and service and patience in the face 
of much opposition, and its loyal 
labors are increasing. On the other 
hand, the human mind tolerates sor- 
cery, mediumship, and occultism, 
which claim to be legitimate proph- 
ecy, and which deceive and seduce 
those who seek to exercise true in- 
tuition into false and misleading ac- 
tivities and into the study of psy- 
chism and its phantom worship. 
Plenty of opportunity is given 
human sense to turn from such 
counterfeits of true intuitive percep- 
tion, but it has refused. In conse- 
quence, this occultism becomes a 
realm of discord and weakness, and 
those who practice it ultimately fall 
into great tribulation except they re- 
pent. They often fall into moral or 
physical death, or both. By bitter 
experience, if in no other way, every 
phase of the human consciousness 
will learn that the Christ-mind is 
the searcher of hearts and the ad- 
ministrator of exact justice. But 
those who have no part in these stud- 
ies and practices, which are the very 
depths of satan, will not be tried 
more severely in the battle of life 
than by the experiences which they 
have already endured. Such true 
knowledge as it has the human con- 
sciousness should carefully hold to 
until it attains full knowledge ; and 
he who obeys this precept will attain 
that consciousness which has author- 
ity over the nations and will ulti- 



II : 28-111 : 6 TEXT AND PARAPHRASE 



99 



Amended Revised Version 
shall rule them with a rod 
of iron, as the vessels of 
the potter are broken to 
shivers ; as I also have re- 
ceived of my Father : and 

28 I will give him the morning 

29 star. He that hath an ear, 
let him hear what the Spir- 
it saith to the churches. 



Suggestive Paraphrase 
mately rule over them by an inflex- 
ible law, overcoming all opposition 
and breaking it to pieces, — even as 
the Christ-mind receives authority 
and power to rule from the heavenly 
Father : and he that overcomes will 
gain that mediatorial perception 
which is the harbinger of the full day 
of Spirit. 



Chapter III. Messages to the Churches (Continued) 
The Letter to a Church in Sardis 



1 And for (to) the angel of 
a (the) church in Sardis 
write : 

These things saith he that 
hath the seven Spirits of 
God, and the seven stars : I 
know thy works, that thou 
hast a name that thou liv- 

2 est, and thou art dead. Be 
thou watchful, and stablish 
the things that remain, 
which were ready to die ; 
for I have found no works 
of thine fulfilled before my 

3 God. Remember therefore 
how thou hast received and 
didst hear ; and keep it, and 
repent. If therefore thou 
shalt not watch, I will come 
as a thief, and thou shalt 
not know what hour I will 

4 come upon thee. But thou 
hast a few names in Sar- 
dis which did not defile 
their garments : and they 
shall walk with me in 
white ; for they are worthy. 

5 He that overcometh shall 
thus be arrayed in white 
garments ; and I will in no 
wise blot his name out of 
the book of life, and I will 
confess his name before my 
Father, and before his 

6 angels. He that hath an 
ear, let him hear what the 
Spirit saith to the churches. 



And for the Christ-mind as the 
manifestation of divine Love address 
instructively human sense in its ex- 
ercise of love. 

These things saith the Christ-idea 
which embraces the seven chief man- 
ifestations of God, acting as the 
guiding angels of human thought. 
Love that is true is reputed to be ex- 
ercised by the human mind, but that 
mind is virtually dead to spiritual 
love, which alone is true. Humanity 
should take great care to firmly fix 
in consciousness that spiritual love 
which it has so nearly lost, since it 
has brought none of its attainments 
to perfection as measured by the 
standard of God. It should bear in 
mind the things which it has been 
taught, and hold fast to them, and 
turn from its evil ways ; otherwise it 
will be brought to a reckoning and to 
punishment at a most unexpected 
time. There are a few who have 
not fallen into sin in their exercise 
of love. They dwell with the Christ 
in purity; for they are worthy. He 
that overcometh the perverted sense 
of love shall live in purity; and he 
shall be numbered among the ever- 
living, and shall know God and all 
His manifestations, and shall be hon- 
ored of Him. He that hath sufficient 
spiritual discernment, let him under- 
stand and heed what the Spirit saith 
to the human sense. 



100 



REVELATION INTERPRETED m : 7-13 



The Letter to a Church in Philadelphia 



Amended Revised Version 

7 And for (to) the angel of 
a (the) church in Philadel- 
phia write : 

These things saith he that 
is holy, he that is true, he 
that hath the key of David, 
he that openeth, and none 
shall shut, and that shut- 

8 teth, and none openeth: I 
know thy works (behold, I 
have set before thee a door 
opened, which none can 
shut), that thou hast a lit- 
tle power, and didst keep 
my word, and didst not 

9 deny my name. Behold, I 
give of the synagogue of 
Satan, of them which say 
they are Jews and they are 
not, but do lie; behold, I 
will make them to come and 
worship before thy feet, and 
to know that I have loved 

io thee. Because thou didst 
keep the word of my pa- 
tience, I also will keep thee 
from the hour of trial, that 
hour which is to come upon 
the whole world, to try them 
that dwell upon the earth. 

ii I come quickly: hold fast 
that which thou hast, that 

12 no one take thy crown. He 
that overcometh, I will make 
him a pillar in the temple 
of my God, and he shall go 
out thence no more : and I 
will write upon him the 
name of my God, and the 
name of the city of my God, 
the new Jerusalem, which 
cometh down out of heaven 
from my God, and mine 

13 own new name. He that 
hath an ear, let him hear 
what the Spirit saith to the 
churches. 



Suggestive Paraphrase 
And for the mediatorial Christ- 
mind as Perception of Reality instruc- 
tively address the human conscious- 
ness in its activity as Sense of Re- 
ality. 

These things saith the Christ-idea, 
holy and true, the order of under- 
standing by which David discerned 
Truth, which reveals reality so that 
no man can hide it from the true 
seekers, and yet covers it so that no 
false mortal sense can see it. The 
mediatorial Christ-mind knows the 
activity of human sense, and sets be- 
fore it a great opportunity which is 
never withdrawn. It has a little spir- 
itual strength, and has kept the letter 
of the Christ-teaching, and has not 
disowned his name. Those who claim 
to be initiated into spiritual things 
when they are not are automatically 
remanded by the Christ-mind to a 
portion among the wicked. Their 
sins and the consequences thereof 
shall cause them to be humbled before 
the true perception, which they shall 
know is loved by the Christ. Because 
human sense has held fast to the mes- 
sage of Christ resolutely, he will save 
it from destruction during the trial 
and judgment that shall come upon 
all materiality. The truth comes to 
the human consciousness suddenly. 
It should hold fast all the truth and 
good which it has, that it may not 
lose its reward. The truth will make 
him that overcometh falsehood a 
great power in the redemptive order 
of Truth, from which he shall never 
be separated; and he shall be known 
as a follower of God, and as a 
dweller in the realization of God, 
which is the true and eternal city, to 
which men mentally rise as they learn 
of God ; and because they have been 
born again, they shall have a new 
character. 



Ill : 14-22 



TEXT AND PARAPHRASE 



101 



The Letter to a Church in Laodicea 



Amended Revised Version 

14 And for (to) the angel of 
a (the) church in Laodicea 
write : 

These things saith the 
Amen, the faithful and true 
witness, the ruler of (the 
beginning of) the creation 

15 of God; I know thy works, 
that thou art neither cold 
nor hot ; I would that thou 
wert cold or hot. So be- 

16 cause thou art lukewarm, 
and neither hot nor cold, I 
will spew thee out of my 

17 mouth. Because thou say- 
est, I am rich, and have got- 
ten riches, and have need of 
nothing; and knowest not 
that thou art the wretched 
one and miserable and poor 

18 and blind and naked : I 
counsel thee to buy of me 
gold refined by fire, that 
thou mayest become rich; 
and white garments, that 
thou mayest clothe thyself, 
and that the shame of thy 
nakedness be not made 
manifest ; and eyesalve to 
anoint thine eyes, that thou 

19 mayest see. As many as I 
love, I reprove and chasten : 
be zealous therefore, and re- 

20 pent. Behold, I stand at 
the door and knock : if any 
man hear my voice and open 
the door, I will come in to 
him, and will sup with him, 

21 and he with me. He that 
overcometh, I will give to 
him to sit down with me in 
my throne, as I also over- 
came, and sat down with 

22 my Father in his throne. He 
that hath an ear, let him 
hear what the Spirit saith 
to the churches. 



Suggestive Paraphrase 

And for the mediatorial Christ as 
Perception of Substance address in- 
structively the - human Sense of Sub- 
stance. 

These things saith the Christ-idea, 
which is absolute and final, the faith- 
ful and true witness, the overlord 
of the creation of God. 

The mediatorial Christ knows the 
content of human sense, that it has 
no overruling zeal for either Spirit 
or matter, and heartily desires that it 
were placed definitely on one side or 
the other. The Christ rejects an in- 
different consecration, which assumes 
his name, and yet often dishonors it. 
Because human sense thinks itself to 
be rich in material goods and to be 
in need of nothing, whereas, in truth, 
it is desperately poor, both mentally 
and outwardly, it is earnestly ex- 
horted to gain through the Christ the 
only true and indestructible sub- 
stance, that it may indeed be rich, — 
rich in righteousness, the only gar- 
ment that will not wear out and that 
covers nothing to be ashamed of ; 
and to sharpen its understanding with 
spiritual discernment, that it may be 
able to perceive truly. Whoever loves 
the Christ-mind is rebuked for his 
sins and is instructed thereby. The 
truth is omnipresent, and so is knock- 
ing at the door of every man's con- 
sciousness. If any man recognizes this 
fact, and takes the truth in, he be- 
comes at one with it. 

Whoever overcomes the sense of 
matter shall share the power and 
authority of Christ, even as Christ 
Jesus overcame the flesh and now 
shares the power and authority of 
God. He that hath sufficient spiritual 
discernment, let him understand and 
heed what the Spirit is revealing to 
the human sense. 



(Continued on Page 155.) 



02 NOTES BY THE READER 



NOTES BY THE READER 103 



104 NOTES BY THE READER 






1UD 



THE SEVEN ANGELS OF THE BOOK OF REVELATION 

ngels of the Churches, 



These Angels are introduced in the Drama of the Apocalypse as 
Angels of the Trumpets, Harvest Angels, and Angels of the Vials. 

They are the same seven in these four different c 

These Angels are chief forms of manifestion c 
of Asia" symbolize seven activities of the humai 
Angels as just defined. The human consciousness is instructed and reformed by these Angels. 



; Christ-Mind. The "Seven Churches 



and forms of 

opposition to the 

Angels in the 

Churches 

(Act 1) 



Forms of opposi- 
tion to the 
Angels of the 
Trumpets and 

Vials. 
(Acts 3 and 6) 



Forms of opposi- 
:ion to the Angel! 

World-Harvest. 
(Act 5) 



Rewards to those 
who obey the 
message of the 

Angels, and thus 



Spiritual 
Perception, 
Attention to 



St/hihu/, 

Ephesus. 
Physical sei 



Belief in matter. 
Materiality. 
Sensuality. 



Earth-dwellers 



Smyrna. 
Human Intellect. 
Matter as premise 



Psychic mentality. 



Beast-worst 
(14:9). 
Idolatry. 



Human Will. 



' Rivers and foun- 



Knowledge 

■Mind 



Thyatira. 

Worldly Lust, 

Carnal knowledge 



Sardis. 
Impurity, 

Sensuality. 



Fleshly desires 

and their 
consequences. 



The full 

Proclamation i 

Truth. 



Symbol, 
Philadelphia. 
False doctrine. 
False teaching. 



Freedom from 

Temptation and 

Apostasy 



Every form of evil 



Christ, the Spir- 
itual Body 
(Throne of God) 



With acknowledgement to the writings of Mr. James 
the nrst and last columns of the chart 
•With acknowledg 



. Pryse for some of ihe material in 



i cnart. 
< < . in. iu Mrs. Mary Baker Eddy for these terms, each of which 
to the phrases printed immediately above it. 



<-r->TTT^ ~T> T-' A T-NT^T^ 



I 



SECTION II 

THE VISION OF THE SEVEN SEALED 
LETTERS 

(Chapter 4:1 — 8:1) 

After Christ Jesus had nearly finished instructing his per- 
sonal disciples, he took Peter, James and John into the 
(mental) mount of transfiguration, and showed them a won- 
derful vision. "And as they came down from the mountain, 
Jesus charged them, saying, Tell the vision to no man, until 
the Son of man be risen again from the dead." (Matt. 17:9.^ 
Likewise, after the impersonal Christ has told John to write 
letters of instruction to his impersonal disciples, the churches, 
he takes John into the mount of vision and shows to him the 
wonderful scene depicted in chapters 4 and 5. 

CHAPTER IV 

A Vision of the Millennium, the Reign of the Holy Spirit 

This Fourth Chapter and a Portion of the Fifth Describe all Re- 
deemed Humanity in the Act of Worshipping God 

In this vision St. John gives us a full presentation of the 
condition which will prevail in the entire realm of human 
mental activity when the struggle between good and evil is 
nearly finished. This 4th chapter is a forevision of that period 
of humanity's spiritual development which, in chapter 20:1-4, 
is spoken of in the place and order where it actually will come 
to pass. This is the period in which satan (discord) will be 
"bound" or suppressed for a long period, spoken of by St. 
John as "a thousand years." Because the Latin word for a 
thousand is mille, and the Latin word for a year is annum, 

105 



106 REVELATION INTERPRETED Iv : 1-3 

this "thousand-year" period of harmony among men on the 
earth -is spoken of in Christian literature as "the millennium". 
How St. John knew that such a period will occur, and how 
we may know that it will, will be made clear in the comments 
on the last acts of the drama. Why this forevision of the 
millennium is given to John at this point in the drama, and 
is given by him to us, will be considered in the comment on 
chapter 5. 

The imagery and symbolism of these chapters appear to 
be extremely materialistic, but, as we shall see later, it is 
impossible to interpret them materially if we take into account 
all of the details which they present. 

Verse 1 "And after this I looked, and behold, a door was opened 
in heaven: and the first voice which I heard was as it were a trumpet 
talking with me; which said, Come up hither, and I will shew thee 
things which must be hereafter." 

The meaning of this whole verse is equivalent to : And I 
was seized with a powerful mental impulse, which awakened 
me to a new and higher vision, giving promise of a fore-knowl- 
edge of future development. 

Throughout the New Testament, the term "heaven" is 
practically synonymous in meaning with the word "conscious- 
ness", and it will illumine the significance of many passages 
of Scripture to substitute the one term for the other. For 
instance, the phrase "a door was opened in heaven" is equiva- 
lent to, A door was opened in (my) consciousness. In the 
Lord's Prayer, the phrase "Our Father which art in heaven" 
should be interpreted as meaning, Our Father which art in 
consciousness. 

Verse 2, 3 "And immediately I zvas in the spirit: and, behold, a 
throne was set in heaven, and one sat on the throne. And he that sat 
was to look upon like a jasper and a sardine stone: and there was a 
rainbow round about the throne, in sight like unto an emerald." 

These verses may be interpreted as follows: And imme- 
diately I had a spiritual vision ; and I saw divine Mind reigning 



IV: 4 SECTION II 107 

in spiritualized or redeemed consciousness. And I perceived 
the majesty and justice of God: and I perceived that mercy, — 
that is, love ultimating in final peace for mankind, — is charac- 
teristic of God. 

The human consciousness is itself, or should be, a "throne" 
for divine Mind, God. The many-hued jasper or opal may be 
taken to symbolize the majesty or glory of God, and the blood- 
red sardine stone may be taken to symbolize God's justice. 
The "rainbow" is the conventional Biblical symbol for the 
ceasing of a storm, or of rest after conflict. The fact that the 
rainbow is spoken of as being "emerald" or green in color, — 
green being of all colors the most restful to the eye, — empha- 
sizes the idea of peace which the symbol of the rainbow is 
intended to convey. 

Verse 4 "And round about the throne were four and twenty seats: 
and upon the seats I saw four and twenty elders sitting, clothed in 
white raiment; and they had on their heads crowns of gold." 

This verse introduces a passage extending to the end of the 
8th verse, which is a description of the Holy Spirit, the 
redeemed human consciousness in the service of God, the 
description being suggested by numerous symbols, most of 
which seem strange to western thought. The reign of the 
Christ or of the Holy Spirit in human consciousness is synony- 
mous with the millennial period or experience. It is almost 
impossible for the writer to describe the mental paths by 
which he finally arrived at the interpretation of the passage 
included in verses 4-8, and it would be tedious and fruitless 
for him to do so, if he could. When one studies a puzzle- 
picture, turning it first this way and then that, in order to 
discover the concealed figure, after he has discovered it, he 
could scarcely remember all the different angles at which he 
held it while he was looking for the figure, nor could he give 
any definite reason why he had not seen it sooner ; for, when 
seen, it is perfectly evident, though wholly hidden up to the 
instant that it is seen. If it were important for another to 



108 REVELATION INTERPRETED IV: 4 

see the hidden figure in the picture, the thing for the dis- 
coverer to do would be to simply show the other the outlines 
of that figure. Once the other had seen it, he would need no 
arguments to convince him that it was there, and no arguments 
to convince him what animal or other object the hidden picture 
was intended to represent. 

This passage in verses 4-8 is distinctly a mental puzzle- 
picture, in which the hidden figure is the Holy Spirit. The 
writer believes that all that is necessary to enable any reader 
to see this fact is for him to be shown the mental outlines of 
the figure, regardless of the processes by which the writer dis- 
covered it ; but the reader may have to wait until all the out- 
lines presented in the entire five verses have been shown 
before he clearly sees and is wholly convinced. It is the 
ensemble that is convincing, rather than the separate parts con- 
sidered by themselves ; and it needs the vision of the whole 
in order to see the significance of the several parts, — just as, 
in finding the hidden figure in a puzzle-picture, one could 
probably not see clearly the head or a foot until he saw the 
whole figure. 

For the present, the reader will largely have to take the 
writer's mere statement for the fact that the "four and twenty 
elders" are to be considered collectively as symbolizing the 
Holy Spirit. There is not enough detail to the symbolism con- 
cerning these "elders" to make it possible to determine with 
certainty in what specific capacity they were thought of by 
John as a figurative presentation of the Spirit, though of the 
general meaning there can be no doubt. After many hours of 
consideration at many and various times, it seems to the author 
most probable that these "elders" were thought of by John 
as symbolizing the leading ideas or manifestations of Mind, 
such as liberty, justice, changelessness, purity, and the like, 
the number "twenty-four" (a multiple of "two" and "twelve") 
signifying that these ideas are manifestations of Mind (see 
Note 2 of the Introduction), having no special significance in 
its literal numerical sense, — that is, the number of right ideas 



IV: 5, 6 SECTION II 109 

or manifestations is not to be considered as being limited to 
' 'twenty- four" in number. 

It may be that these "four and twenty elders" were thought 
of by John as representing the twelve patriarchs or heads of 
tribes of the Old Testament and the twelve apostles of Christ, 
regarded as heads of his church, which is to include all man- 
kind, Gentiles as well as Jews ; but, in this case, the patriarchs 
and apostles are to be considered representatively as standing 
for all Jews and Gentiles, indicating that they will all come 
into the service of God. 

The phrases "clothed in white raiment" and "on their heads 
crowns of gold" indicate that these "elders" are free from sin 
and are crowned with the authority of God. 

Verse 5 "And out of the throne proceeded lightnings, and thunder- 
ings, and voices: and there were seven lamps of fire burning before the 
throne, which are the seven Spirits of God." 

The "lightnings" symbolize the enlightening quality of the 
Holy Spirit and the swiftness or immediateness of its judg- 
ments; the "thunderings" signify the majesty and power of 
the Spirit, and the "voices" its intelligence and evangelizing 
character. "The seven lamps of fire burning before the 
throne" which are spoken of as identical with "the seven 
Spirits of God" are the seven chief manifestations of the 
Christ-mind, which have been described and discussed at 
length in the comment on the Angels of the Churches in 
Section I. 

Verse 6 "And before the throne there zuas a sea of glass like unto 
crystal." 

In this first clause of verse 6, the redeemed human con- 
sciousness, the Holy Spirit, is again presented under the figure 
of "a sea of glass like unto crystal", symbolizing the fact that 
this spiritualized consciousness, in its absolute loyalty to 
Truth, will be changeless and immovable as glass, and trans- 
parent as crystal, because it will contain nothing which will 
need to be concealed. 



110 REVELATION INTERPRETED IV: 6-8 

Verse 6 (second sentence) "And in the midst of the throne, and 
round about the throne, were four beasts full of eyes before and behind. 

7 "And the first beast zvas like a lion, and the second beast like a 
calf, and the third beast had a face as a man, and the fourth beast zvas 
like a flying eagle. 

8 "And the four beasts had each of them six wings about him; and 
they were full of eyes within: and they rest not day and night, saying, 
Holy, Holy, Holy, Lord God Almighty, which was, and is, and is to 
come." * 

In the verses of this passage is given a piece of imagery 
which seems to have perplexed students of Revelation more 
than any other part of the book. The author has read nearly 
a score of different interpretations of what St. John is sup- 
posed to have meant by this passage, — interpretations given 
by expositors recognized as having been men of scholarly 
attainments ; yet none of these, as it seems to the author, have 
clearly apprehended what the interpretation of this passage 
from a wholly spiritual point of view enables us to see. 

The key to what seems to the author to be the right inter- 
pretation is given by the fact that these "four beasts' (better 
translated, as in practically all modern translations, "four living 
creatures") are represented as being "in the midst of the 
throne, and round about the throne" (which is a fair and 
exact rendering of the Greek text) ; that is, they are repre- 
sented as having exactly the same position as the four and 
twenty elders (see verse 4) and as "the Lamb", or the Christ 
(see verse 6 of chapter 5). Now, if the "throne" were mate- 
rial, or if the four living creatures or the twenty-four elders 
were corporealities, the physical law that two or more material 
objects cannot occupy the same place at the same time would 
interdict the possibility that the above description could be 
true. But if the four living creatures be regarded as wholly 
mental, then they could literally pervade both the divine Mind 
and the redeemed mentalities of the representative elders. 



Compare Ezekiel 1 :S-25. 



IV : 6-8 SECTION II 111 

We must consider the further fact that these four living 
creatures, being represented as "in the midst of the throne', 
are presented as occupying exactly the same mental position as 
the Christ, who, in verse 6 of chapter 5, is also presented as 
being "in the midst of the throne". In all Biblical literature 
there is only one entity represented as being as close to God, 
the Father, as is Christ, the Son ; and that third entity is "the 
Holy Spirit", which "proceeds from the Father and the Son", 
and is "one" with the Father and the Son. In all carefully 
considered theological definitions of the Holy Spirit, it, or he, 
is represented as being the manifestation of God and the 
Christ in the consciousness of humanity. These facts, taken 
together with the fact that the whole chapter is dealing with 
the relation of redeemed humanity to God, gives us an indi- 
cation, which we can presently confirm, that the four living 
creatures are intended to symbolize the redeemed human con- 
sciousness, that consciousness in which there is the presence 
and the rule of the Comforter, the Holy Spirit. 

The Holy Spirit, the spirit of Truth in human conscious- 
ness, if we are to have a complete account of it, must be 
regarded from two standpoints, — not only as "coming down" 
from God, in which case it is well symbolized by "the seven 
Spirits before the throne", but also as "coming up" to God, 
in which case it is aptly symbolized by the four living creatures, 
as we shall presently see. 

"Four" is often used in the Apocalypse and elsewhere in a 
collective sense. For instance, "the four winds of the earth" , 
mentioned in verse 1 of chapter 7, is an expression manifestly 
intended to signify all destructive forces, or the one destruc- 
tive agency, satan. In addition to the fact that, according 
to the idiom of his own language, St. John could use the term 
"four" in this connection without implying a denial of the 
unity of the manifestation that he was describing, there was a 
special reason why he should use that term, namely, the fact 
that, in Hebrew usage, "seven" was a Spirit-sign, while "four" 
was a world-sign, both signifying all, or the totality of what- 



112 REVELATION INTERPRETED IV : 6-8 

ever class or manifestation is being described. Accordingly, 
"the seven Spirits of God before the throne" indicate the 
divine factor in awakened consciousness, the spirit of Truth, 
while "the four living creatures" indicate the human factor 
in awakened but not yet fully spiritualized human conscious- 
ness, which was formerly in the service of the world rather 
than of God. Clear thinking requires, however, that we 
should understand that a world-serving consciousness cannot 
be made into a God-serving consciousness, but that the world- 
serving factor in human consciousness is being gradually 
replaced by Spirit-serving consciousness, and that finally this 
replacing process will be complete. However, this replacing 
process is so gradual that the redeemed human consciousness 
seems to gradually come up from the world-serving plane on 
the one side, as it actually comes from God, the Spirit-serving 
plane, on the other side. There being this perfectly evident 
reason for representing the redeemed human consciousness 
under the symbol of "four", according to the current Hebrew 
usage (such usage of "four" in the sense of the total or one 
being practically invariable), we need not be dissuaded from 
understanding that the consciousness described by St. Paul 
as "the mind that is in Christ" is here symbolized, either by 
the fact that "four" creatures are mentioned, or that they are 
apparently mentioned separately in verse 7, in various verses 
of chapter 6, and in other places in the Book. When the 
phrases, "the first living creature" , "the second living creature" , 
and so on, are mentioned, we are to understand one phase of 
the indwelling Spirit, the Comforter, or, more likely, the use of 
that figure of speech, common in all languages, whereby a part 
is used as signifying the whole, — as, for instance, when we 
speak of four ships as "four sail". 

These four living creatures are spoken of as "full of eyes 
before and behind" , and as "full of eyes within" ; that is, as 
being composed of eyes. In Biblical literature the "eye" is 
very frequently used as the symbol of spiritual intelligence. 
"The eyes of the Lord run to and fro throughout the whole 



IV: 6-8 SECTION II 113 

earth" (2 Chron. 16:9). "The seeing eye the Lord hath 
made" (Prov. 20:12). God is "of purer eyes than to behold 
evil" (Hab. 1 113). "The light of the body is the eye" (Matt. 
6:22). "The eyes of your understanding being enlightened" 
(Eph. 1:18). Hence, in terms of the usage of the Jews for 
centuries, the description of the living creatures as "full of 
eyes before and behind and within" is equivalent to saying 
that the living creatures are composed of, or wholly manifest, 
spiritual intelligence, — which fact exactly confirms the inter- 
pretation of the living creatures as being the symbol of spiritual 
consciousness, the Christ-consciousness or the indwelling 
Holy Spirit. 

In verse 7, we are told that the first living creature was 
like a lion and the second like a calf, and the third had a 
man- face, and the fourth was like a flying eagle. One may see 
at a glance what this imagery means, viz., that the four chief 
phases of the redeemed human consciousness (the four living 
creatures considered collectively) are: moral courage, sym- 
bolized by the lion; sacrifice (not slavish obedience, but loving 
sacrifice), symbolized by the calf, which is the Biblical symbol 
of priestly sacrifice ; intelligence, symbolized by the man-face ; 
and holiness, symbolized by the flying eagle, which is employed 
later in the Apocalypse, as we shall see, as a symbol for the 
Holy Spirit. If one will carefully consider, he will readily 
perceive that any human being, or humanity as a whole, if 
exercising moral courage, self-sacrifice, intelligence and holi- 
ness, is perfectly equipped for the service of God. It may be 
that aspiration toward God is a more perfect interpretation of 
the flying eagle than holiness, though they are not much differ- 
ent in meaning, especially when considered as a desire on the 
part of humanity. Several expositors have advanced the idea 
that the four living creatures symbolize moral courage, sacri- 
fice, intelligence and aspiration, but none of them seem to have 
thought of these four as united, symbolizing the Christ-mind 
or Comforter in human consciousness. 

Lastly, these four living creatures are represented as having 



114 REVELATION INTERPRETED IV : 6-8 

"each of them six wings". Since all winged creatures in the 
natural world have only one pair of wings, the fact that each 
of these living creatures has three pairs, — or twelve pairs 
among them, considering them collectively, — indicates an ex- 
ceeding swiftness of flight, so much so, that the possession 
of this number of wings may readily be taken to symbolize 
omnipresence, another necessary quality of spiritual conscious- 
ness. If some one raises the objection that "six" is the con- 
ventional Hebrew satan-sign, it may be answered by saying 
that, if so, this merely indicates, as in the case of the use of 
"four", that the human consciousness was formerly in the 
service of the world and of satan. But, again, if the six wings 
be considered as three pairs of wings, which would be more 
natural, then we have the use of "three", which was another 
conventional Spirit-sign, — as, for instance, "the Father, Son, 
and Holy Ghost, and these three are one". In fact, in the con- 
ventional usage of the Jews, "three" is the most strongly 
spiritual symbol known to their language. 

While he does not interpret the four living creatures as 
symbolizing the Holy Spirit manifest in human consciousness, 
one commentator* makes the interesting suggestion that the 
twenty-four wings (six each) of the four living creatures 
are identical with the twenty-four elders. The twenty-four 
elders, servants or apostles of God and His Christ, are cer- 
tainly in the service of the Holy Spirit, and might very prop- 
erly be regarded as "wings" for the promulgation of the Spirit 
among men; that is, all apostles of Christ are wings for the 
transportation or dissemination of Truth. He also makes the 
further interesting suggestion that each of the six wings of 
the living creatures corresponds to one of the six directions in 
space (represented by the six faces of a cube), and so sym- 
bolizes omnipresence, — an interpretation which is exactly, in 
accord with the nature and office of the spirit of Truth. 

It may clarify and make practical our understanding of the 



*Mr. Pryse. 



IV: Ml SECTION II 115 

four living creatures, if we consider that collectively they sym- 
bolize the aggregate mental activity of those human beings 
who in all ages have practically demonstrated the healing and 
saving truth, which Christ Jesus taught, and of those who, 
today, are proving by their works, in casting out evils and 
healing the sick, the correctness of their apprehension of 
Truth, their possession of that Christ-mind which St. Paul 
declared was to be in us effectually upon this plane of experi- 
ence. 

Verses 9-1 1 "And when those four hearts give glory and honour and 
thanks to him that sat on the throne, zvho liveth forever and ever, the 
four and twenty elders fall down before him that sat on the throne, and 
worship him that liveth forever and ever, and cast their crowns before 
the throne, saying: Thou art worthy, Lord, to receive glory and 
honour and power: for thou hast created all things, and for thy pleasure 
they are and were created." 

In the Greek, verse nine is introduced by the word hotau, 
which means whenever, instead of "when!' The reason for 
the assertion made in the verses above quoted is that the 
"four beasts' and the "jour and twenty elders" are exactly 
equivalent, both, when considered collectively, symbolized the 
Holy Spirit or the true church. In the case of the "jour 
beasts/' the manifestation of Mind is considered in four broad 
phases, while in the case of the "eiders' it is considered in a 
larger number of more specific phases, which, however, are 
included in the "four." Accordingly, whenever the "jour 
beasts" do anything the "jour and twenty elders" are neces- 
sarily doing the same thing. 



116 NOTES BY THE READER 



CHAPTER V 

The Sealed Book and the Lamb Who Is to Open It 

Verse I "And I saw in the right hand of him that sat on the throne 
a book written within and on the back side, sealed with seven seals/' 

John here indicates that the solution of the human problem 
is known only to God, the Father. Sin so enslaves the human 
sense that it cannot understand or "unloose" its own problems. 
In making the assertion given in verse I, John is making con- 
cession to the immaturity of human understanding, as did 
Jesus, when he said : "But of that day and hour knoweth no 
man, no, not the angels of heaven, but my Father only". 
These are ad hominem ways of saying that the working out 
of human redemption can only be rightly understood by a 
quality of consciousness that is spiritual, that is elevated far 
above the ordinary materialistic sense of things. God "is of 
purer eyes than to behold evil, and cannot look upon iniquity". 
Hence, in the absolute, Mind can have no consciousness of 
the human struggle with error, since to infinite Truth there is 
no error, as to light there is no darkness. Yet Mind is the 
only basis of power which men can effectually apply to over- 
come evil. 

It has been suggested (*) that the phrase "written within 
and on the back side" is to be interpreted as meaning that this 
book, when first disclosed to humanity, would have an exoteric, 
outer, or apparent meaning, which many would accept as the 
real meaning, but that it would also have an esoteric, inside, or 
hidden meaning, — so effectually hidden, that it is represented 
as being "sealed with seven seals", — that is, hidden in large 
part from human understanding. 



Air. Hughes, in "The Revelation. 

117 



118 REVELATION INTERPRETED v : 2-7 

Verses 2-5 "And I saw' a strong angel proclaiming with a loud 
voice, Who is worthy to open the book, aivd to loose the seals thereof? 
And no man in heaven, nor in earth, neither under the earth, zvas able 
to open the book, neither to look thereon. And I wept much, because 
no man was found worthy to open and to read the book, neither to look 
thereon. And one of the elders saith unto me, Weep not, behold, the 
lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David, hath prevailed to open the 
book, and to loose the seven seals thereof." 

The "strong anger of verse 2 fittingly symbolizes one of 
the higher phases of John's spiritual consciousness. These 
verses as a whole represent John's method of emphasizing the 
importance of what he saw, and that it might be disclosed, if a 
way could be found. The Christ-man is, of course, "the lion 
of the tribe of 'Judah" ', and, being the true selfhood of every 
human being, he is "the Root" of every man, and was "the 
Root of David". This Christ-man, being "lifted up" or 
enthroned in the consciousness of John, broke for John the 
seals of ignorance which had hidden from him the knowledge 
of the future, even as this same Christ-man, if we lift him up, 
or attain unto him, will reveal to us all that he revealed to John, 
— will make known to us "the way of Life". 

Verse 6 "And I beheld, and, lo, in the midst of the throne and of 
the four beasts, and in the midst of the elders, stood a Lamb as it had 
been slain, having seven horns and seven eyes, which are the seven 
Spirits of God sent forth into all the earth." 

The Lamb is, manifestly, the Christ-consciousness, which 
pervades the spiritual church (which is "the throne" of God), 
"the four beasts" , and the consciousness of "the elders" , as 
explained in the comment on chapter 4. "Having seven horns 
and seven eyes" means having all the power and knowledge of 
God, which knowledge and power, considered collectively, is 
the Holy Spirit, "the seven Spirits of God" , — the spiritualized 
human consciousness in its militant work of saving the world. 

Verse 7 "And he came and took the book out of the right hand of 
him that sat on the throne." 



V ; 8-14 SECTION II 119 

This is a figurative way of saying that the Christ-conscious- 
ness, operating in John's mentality, was about to reveal "the 
things which are, and the things which shall be hereafter" . 

Verses 8-14 "And when he had taken the book, the four beasts and 
four and twenty elders fell dozvn before the Lamb, having every one 
of them harps, and golden vials full of odors, which are the prayers of 
saints. And they sung a new song, saying, Thou art zvorthy to take 
the book, and to open the seals thereof: for thou wast slain, and hast 
redeemed us to God by thy blood out of every kindred, and tongue, and 
people, and nation (All modern authorities agree that the last half of 
this verse should be rendered : "and hast redeemed to God by thy blood 
men out of every kindred, and tongue, and people, and nation"') ; and 
hast made us (them) unto our God kings and priests: and zve (they) 
shall reign on' the earth. And I beheld, and I heard the voice of many 
angels round about the throne and the beasts and the elders: and the 
number of them was ten thousand times ten thousand, and thousands of 
thousands; saying with a loud voice, Worthy is the Lamb that zvas 
slain to receive power, and riches, and wisdom, and strength, and honor, 
and glory, and blessing. And every creature which is in heaven, and 
on the earth, and under the earth, and such as are in the sea, and all 
that are in them, heard I saying, Blessing, and honour, and glory, and 
power, be unto him that sitteth upon the throne, and unto the Lamb for 
ever and ever. And the four beasts said, Amen. And the four and 
tzventy elders fell dozvn and zuor shipped him that liveth for ever and 
ever." 

There is little in this passage that requires comment, except 
perhaps to say that this is the first of a series of similar chants 
interspersed in the Book between the different acts, and John 
probably got the idea of such insertion from the chants in the 
Greek dramas. 






120 NOTES BY THE READER 



CHAPTER VI 

The Opening of the Seals 

The First Seal 

Verse i "And I sazv when the lamb opened one of the seals, and I 
heard, as it were the noise of thunder, one of the four beasts say, Come 
and see." 

"The Lamb", removing John's ignorance with regard to 
one phase of what was to be made known, was his dawning 
spiritual consciousness, and it was also this same spiritual 
consciousness which was "as it were the noise of thunder, one 
of the four beasts saying, come and see" . Divine Mind, the 
Christ-consciousness, and the Holy Spirit are indeed "one" 
in office, and are inseparable in essence. Divine Mind as the 
Christ makes a revelation to John, and one phase of the Christ- 
mind or the Holy Spirit ("one of the four beasts") summons 
John to behold the revelation. The "thunder" symbolizes the 
power and majesty of the message. The phase of the Christ- 
consciousness which here speaks to John is that "like a lion", 
and summons John to behold "the lion of the tribe of Judah" , 
the Christ, under a different figure, as we shall see in the next 
verse. 

Verse 2 "And I sazv, and behold a white horse: and he that sat on 
him had a bow; and a crown zvas given unto him: and he went forth 
conquering, and to conquer." 

We here have the Christ-idea, entering upon the conquest 
of the world, under the figure of a white horse with his rider. 
In chapter 19 :n, we shall find him under the same figure, just 
in the process of finishing his task. The bow is symbolical of 
the power of the Christ-consciousness to ''shoot" the truth 
into human consciousness ; in other words, it symbolizes the 
militant attitude of the Christ. The crown is the symbol of 
his authority. 
121 



122 REVELATION INTERPRETED VI: 3, 4 



The Second Seal 

Verse 3 "And when he had opened the second seal, I heard the 
second beast say, Come and see." 

The Christ-consciousness, in its second phase, that of self- 
sacrifice ("like a calf"), summons John to behold the first 
great obstacle which the militant Christ meets in the human 
consciousness, — namely, self-assertiveness or human will, op- 
posed to self-sacrifice, as we shall see in the next verse. 

Verse 4 "And there went out another horse that was red: and 
power was given to him that sat thereon to take peace from the earth,, 
and that . they should kill one another: and there was given unto him 
a great szvord." 

Wherever human will is set up as governor, there peace 
departs, and men begin to kill one another. The significance 
of the symbolism and teaching of this seal is very aptly, though 
inadequately, illustrated in the career of Napoleon Bonaparte 
and attendant results, also in the present (1914-1915) wars in 
Europe and in Mexico. Without doubt, the aggregation of 
impersonal evil in all its gigantic proportions is most fittingly 
symbolized by "the red horse with his rider" , "the great red 
dragon', and by "the horned beasts' of Revelation. A mere 
Napoleon or any other person is seen to be a trivial thing 
indeed when compared to the lust, the false belief, of the 
world, considered as a whole. 

A current number of The Literary Digest (March 6, 
191 5) gives some excellent examples of the activities of the 
carnal mind which are symbolized by the red horse and his 
rider, and which "take peace from the earth" ; namely, the 
attempt at domination by human will, conceit and selfishness 
under the guise of what is supposed to be "patriotism." Writ- 
ing in the Berlin Deutsche Tageszeitung, Count von Reventlow 
says: 



VI: 3, 4 SECTION II 123 

"Germans will do much more than persevere. They will 
fight until everything complies with their will — a will that 
vehemently and without scruple puts all means into its service 
by which it desires to arrive at its aim." 

Writing in the Frankfurter Zeitung, Professor von Ley- 
den, of the University of Berlin, declares : 

"Germany must and will stand alone. The Germans are 
the salt of the earth ; they will fulfill their destiny, which is to 
rule the world and to control other nations for the benefit of 

mankind There are the neutral nations. . . .Most of them 

entertain hostile feelings against Germany. We do not need 
them. They are not necessary to our happiness nor to our 
more material interests. Let us ban them from our houses 
and our tables. Let us make them feel that we despise them. 
They must understand that they are to be left out in the cold 
just because they do not merit German approval."* 

In the Munich Neueste Nachrichten, Dr. Karl Wolff coun- 
sels the German people as follows : 

"Thou shalt have no other thought than of this war: for 
its consequences of disaster, if we are vanquished, shall make 
themselves felt to the third and fourth generation. But it will 
bear blest fruit unto the tenth generation if we know how to 
conquer and found the world anew as a German product. 

"Thou shalt not take in vain the terrible name of War, 
neither in gross pleasantry, nor in foolish derision, nor in any 
way unworthily, by word or picture. 

"The German soul shall continue to spread over the world, 
mighty in its culture, full of understanding, and gathering into 
the treasure-store of the Fatherland all that all the nations 
hold as most precious." 

Such false ambitions as these started the latest war in 
Europe, and have started the majority of the wars whose 
records blacken the pages of human history. Such false 
ambitions as these are not by any means confined to the 

* Just as this book is going to press, the author learns that this state- 
ment has been discredited, as coming from Professor von Leyden. 
However, somebody wrote it, and so it illustrates just as well the kind 
of motive which is the cause of war. 



124 REVELATION INTERPRETED VI: 3, 4 

German people. They can be found dominating the hearts 
and minds of great numbers of Americans, English, French, 
Russians, Japanese, and of peoples of every nation and race, 
to a greater or less extent. How aptly did St. John declare, 
in symbolic language: "And there wefit out [from and in 
mortal mentality] another horse that was red: and power was 
given to him that sat thereon to take peace from the earth, 
and that they should kill one another; and there was given 
■unto him a great sword." 

The following from an editorial in the Chicago Examiner 
of March 17, 1915, well sums up the situation as to the present 
war: 

''Russia is at war to gain her centuries-old object of seiz- 
ing Constantinople and welding the Slav peoples into a world- 
dominating Slav empire. 

"Austria is at war to hinder Russia's aggrandizement and 
to blot out the Serbian and Montenegrin nationalities. 

"France is at war to regain prestige and to recover Alsace- 
Lorraine. 

"Serbia is at war because racial and religious antipathies 
and Russian money and intrigue controlled the assassin who 
made himself king of that turbulent country by double murder 
of his royal predecessors. 

"Japan is at war because she plots to seize China and ex- 
ploit the riches and resources of that populous and helpless 
country in building up a great Asiatic world power. 

"Germany is at war because she means to remain the pre- 
dominating power in Europe. 

"And Great Britain is at war because German industry, 
patience and skill were rapidly taking the trade of the world 
from British financiers, manufacturers and ship-owners, and 
events gave Great Britain a chance to destroy that trade com- 
petition by a war in which all other parties to the conflict 
were bound to suffer more loss than Great Britain, no matter 
which way victory went. 

"This war is just like every other European war — a slaugh- 
ter of the peoples for the benefit and gains of the autocratic 
and aristocratic classes." 



VI: 5, 6 SECTION II 125 

The Third Seal 

Verses 5, 6 "And when he had opened the third seal, I heard the 
third beast say, Come and see. And I beheld, and lo a black horse ; and 
he that sat on him had a pair of balances in his hand, And I heard a 
■voice in the midst of the four beasts say, A measure of wheat for a 
penny, and three measures of barley for a penny ; and see thou hurt not 
the oil and the wine." 

The Christ-mind or Holy Spirit, manifest as spiritual intel- 
ligence ("face as a man"), summons John to behold the activity 
of its opposite, materialism and selfish stupidity, as the second 
opponent to the militant Christ. Material sense and selfishness 
value things above men, matter above intelligence. 

The black horse and his rider may be taken as a symbol 
for "commercialism" in its selfish and greedy form, in which 
it would extort, if it could, something like a silver denarius 
("a penny" of Bible times, worth in purchasing value in the 
present day about a dollar, the current day's wage for common 
labor) for a quart, or ration, (choenix, "measure") of wheat, 
and a denarius for three rations of barley. 

We may not be entirely sure what St. John meant by the 
phrase "and see thou hurt not the oil and the wine" , since in 
these words so few details are given that there is practically no 
basis at all for a satisfactory analysis. Hence, we are thrown 
back wholly upon a consideration of what our sense of John's 
thought in general would lead us to expect him to mean in this 
connection, together with our knowledge of the sense in which 
the words "oil" and "wine" are employed in the Scriptures 
generally, where they are sometimes used literally and some- 
times symbolically. 

The phrase has been interpreted to mean, "put the oil and 
the wine out of reach altogether", making the whole sentence 
equivalent to a declaration to modern common laborers in 
America : 

A quart of wheat for a day's wages, and three quarts of 
barley for a day's wages ; and see that you do not touch butter 
and milk. 



126 REVELATION INTERPRETED VI : 5, 6 

This interpretation is only possible by a very strained trans- 
lation of the Greek me adikcses, the natural meaning of which 
is "hurt not", as in the Authorized Version. 

On the whole it seems best not to take "the oil and the 
wine" literally, but symbolically, in a sense in which they are 
often employed in the Scriptures, denoting faith and inspira- 
tion. These words being thus interpreted, the phrase "see 
thou hurt not the oil and the wine" seems to be an assurance 
from the Holy Spirit ("a voice in the midst of the four beasts") 
that mortal sense, in all its selfish and murderous doing, in all 
its domination and imposition, and in all its long-drawn period 
of apparent ascendency, will never be able to suppress spiritual 
aspiration and consecration to spiritual ideals in the human 
consciousness. 

Probably the wheat and the barley should also be taken 
symbolically, as well as the oil and the wine; in which case, 
the whole sentence would indicate that the selfish and greedy 
assertiveness of mortal sense produces in human consciousness 
a great famine of "the bread of life," of the demonstrable 
knowledge of God and of His Christ, which is life eternal, 
but does not cut off the spiritual consecration and inspiration 
which hold humanity anchored against the tide of materialism 
until the latter has run its course and become inert. 

The experience of humanity in the last eighteen hundred 
years would seem to justify such a declaration. Until very 
recently, there has been in all these centuries very little spiritual 
knowledge of a demonstrable kind, — of a kind which would 
heal the sick, or effectually and promptly reform the sinner 
without leaving him to struggle in the throes of human will and 
which would serve as a reliable basis for overcoming poverty 
and want; and thus, there has been a famine of "that bread 
which cometh down from heaven" which actually feeds people 
in their daily lives ; but during all these centuries a degree of 
inspiration which has kept alive in the human consciousness 
a vital sense of God and a faithful consecration to the call 



VI: 5, 6 SECTION II 127 

of religion with a confident expectation of the triumph of 
good farther on has never been destroyed nor even seriously 
"hurt". 

This would seem to indicate the true import of John's 
message in this verse. In any case, it may be said with assur- 
ance that there could be no material famine, let mortal sense 
do what it would, unless it first produced a spiritual famine, 
since to those who are really "rich toward God", a sufficient 
supply of this world's goods is infallibly "added". Said Christ 
Jesus : "Be not anxious, saying, What shall we eat? or, What 
shall we drink? or Wherewithal shall we be clothed? . . . 
But seek ye first the Kingdom of God and his righteousness; 
and all these things shall be added unto you' (R. V.) ; and our 
Lord knew whereof he spake, when he made this declaration. 

It would seem that we are now entering upon the period 
when the black horse and his rider are beginning to be over- 
come, and when humanity will use and enjoy not only "the oil 
and the wine" , but the "wheat" and the "barley" , of spiritual 
life, — when here and now men shall partake of spiritual bread 
and wine. 

The general facts indicating the arrival of such a period 
are two-fold. First, materialism as a theory has run its course. 
The men most wise in the world's wisdom, the leading natural 
scientists, have openly confessed that neither matter nor force, 
nor anything else discoverable in the realm of natural science, 
furnishes an adequate explanation of the universe or of 
innumerable activities which the natural scientist daily 
observes ; and so these men are openly turning to an assumed 
First Cause, God, infinite Mind, as the only sufficient inter- 
pretation .of the things that are and of the things that live. 
The collapse of materialism in theory is bound to be followed 
by the collapse of materialism in practice, since, in the long 
account, the activities of men are governed by their ideals, 
though, through the inertia of ignorance and habit, practice 
lags behind theory as the tides lag behind the moon which 
causes them. 



128 SECTION II VI -.5,6 

If the demonstrable truth, made known to humanity in 
Christian Science, had been active in the human world long 
enough to have reached and influenced the masses of Europe, 
the present (191 5) war would never have started. It com- 
menced and is being carried on only because the majority have 
not yet learned that materialism, in all its phases, is false doc- 
trine, and so have continued to be deceived by it, as an inherit- 
ance from the ignorance of the past. But if the leaders of 
human thinking continue to teach that materialism is not the 
permanent truth and reality of being, and if they teach that 
the nature of God (Spirit) furnishes the only reliable standard 
by which to measure thought, feeling and conduct, and if they 
live, so far as may be for the present and increasingly, in a 
manner consistent with their teachings, and succeed in in- 
fluencing the masses of the people to think, feel and act like- 
wise, further wars will be impossible. It may be regarded as 
certain that as long as materialism is regarded as truth by the 
great majority of the world's people, wars and famines will 
periodically occur, but — 

Second, the healing of the sick, the reforming of the sin- 
ner, and the overcoming of poverty and discord of various 
kinds, through the understanding and enforcement of the 
power of God, — these practical works are now being done in 
every land, and there is every indication of a rapid and more 
widespread increase of these activities, so that, as indicated 
above, the author believes that materialism, as a predominant 
force in the world, will soon be found to have received its 
death-blow. 



NOTES BY THE READER 129 



130 NOTES BY THE READER 



VI: 7, 8 SECTION II 131 



The Fourth Seal 

Verses 7, 8 "And when he had opened the fourth seal I heard the 
voice of the fourth beast say, Come and see. And I looked, and behold 
a pale horse; and his name that sat on him was Death, and Hell fol- 
lowed with him, and power was given unto them over the fourth part of 
the earth, to kill with the sword, and with hunger, and with the beasts 
of the earth." 

The Christ with us, manifest as holiness {"like a flying 
eagle", aspiration after Spirit), summons John to behold its op- 
posite, sensuality, worldly lust, as the third opponent in human 
consciousness to the militant Christ. This is symbolized by 
the pale horse and his rider. Sensuality constitutes the chief 
cause of "death and hell" in human experience ; and, in the 
sense of being opposite to Spirit, which is Life and harmony, 
sensuality is itself death and discord, — "dead" to all that is 
pure and true. In this 8th verse, sensuality is rightly said to 
dominate something like a fourth of human activity, and to 
lead to war and famine and death and persecution. Sensuality 
and worldliness have repeatedly led rulers to throw followers 
of the Christ, spiritually minded men, into the arena, to be 
devoured by "beasts of the earth". On the field of individual 
experience, sensuality will seem to kill the spiritual life, if it 
be given sway, with mental conflict ("the sword"), and with 
a famine of truth and good ("hunger"), and with absolute 
materialism ("death"), and with animal passion ("beasts of 
the earth"). 

In this chapter, we have seen the carnal mind, manifest as 
human ambition, under the symbol of a red horse with his 
rider; later, especially in chapter 12, we shall see it as "a great 
red dragon", symbolizing "that old serpent, the devil and 
satan". We have seen the dominance of worldly government, 
human will actuated by greed, under the symbol of a black 
horse with his rider; later, especially in chapter 13, we shall see 
it under the symbol of a seven-headed, ten-horned beast. We 
have seen sensuality under the symbol of a pale horse with his 



132 REVELATION INTERPRETED VI : 7, 8 

rider; later, especially in chapters iy and 18, we shall see it 
under the figure of a woman arfayed in purple and scarlet, 
"the great whore", Babylon, the worldly city. 



AN EXCERPT 

The following from the author's pamphlet, "The Cause and Cure 
of War," was not written with verses 3-8 of chapter VI 
in view, but seems worth reprinting here as a 
commentary upon them 

When men thoroughly learn the divine nature, and are 
supremely seeking to live on the higher spiritual planes, they 
will be less concerned about material luxuries and the gratifi- 
cation of fleshly appetites. Material comfort all men are 
entitled to, as long as they still dwell in material sense at all; 
and when all are satisfied with comfort in human living, not 
seeking material extravagances because their supreme interest 
and affections are set on things above, there will be plenty 
of material supplies in every country for all, without need for 
one country to try to enrich itself at the expense of others. 
When greed, selfishness, avarice and sensuous pleasures are 
removed, then each nation can begin to solve the problem of 
properly distributing its material resources and supplies among 
its own citizens. Then all will have enough, — all that is need- 
ful while they are learning the higher things of Spirit, which 
is the only legitimate end of human living. If, for instance, 
in England, the landed aristocracy would give up their shoot- 
ing preserves and other large tracts held merely for selfish, 
material enjoyment, so that this land could be distributed 
among numbers of small farmers, England would not need to 
worry about maintaining control of the seas lest her food 
supply might be cut off.* One of the main producing causes 

* That the above may not seem a mere unwarranted assertion on 
the part of the author, the following may be quoted from Mr. Frank 
Harris, long a resident of England, and formerly editor of The Fort- 
nightly Review, also of The Saturday Review: 

"Thanks to the greed of England's landowning oligarchy, she does 
rot produce one-quarter enough food to supply her own wants ; this is 

133 



134 REVELATION INTERPRETED VI : 3-8 

of war is, that the ruling classes of many nations not only take 
to themselves more of the material products of their own 
countries than is needful to serve their own highest good, but, 
even in addition to this, bring their countries into war, every 
now and then, for the purpose of adding to their gains at the 
expense of other nations. When finally, however, the divine 
nature comes to rule in the hearts of men, this sort of thing 
will cease to happen. 

There will always be more or less strife and ill feeling 
among mortals as long as some are ruled by others ; yet the 
necessity for some to hold sway over others will continue 
until all have reached practically an equal understanding of 
God and His law. When all are acquainted with and recog- 
nize in conduct the supremacy of the divine law, every man 
will be governed by the law of God and cannot trespass on 
his brothers' rights. Thus will be removed all need of legisla- 
tures, courts, police officers, and every other form of the 
machinery of government having to do with the regulation of 
matters of personal conduct. This is divine autocracy or the 
true democracy. 

But this equality in the understanding of God cannot 
come through material generation or the propagation of 
the human species, the offspring of the carnal mind. So 
long as the fleshly mind conceives and embodies its sensual 
progeny, the machinery of material government and the dom- 
ination of one human will over another must continue to 
result in war, pestilence, famine, disease, and death. 



the Achilles heel of England. . . . Nothing will ever teach the English 
oligarchy or dissipate their pleasure-sodden dream of perpetual para- 
sitical enjoyment except defeat in war. . . . One-third of England's 
population is always on the verge of starvation. . . . More than a 
hundred years ago, Tom Paine declared that nothing would civilize 
England till the blood of her children had been shed on her own 
hearths. It will take a defeat in war to wrest the land of England 
from the lords who stole it and give it back to the people." 



VI: 3-8 SECTION II 135 

The millennium, the period of perfect harmony among 
men, will appear only when the fact comes to be both theo- 
retically and practically realized, that God is the only creator 
and Father, and that the only real man, — man in the image 
and likeness of God, and therefore spiritual, — is already born 
— eternally borne forth of divine creative thinking. Jesus 
said: "Gall no man your father upon the earth: for one is 
your Father, which is in heaven" (Matt. 23:9). St. Paul 
declared : "They which are the children of the flesh, these 
are not the children of God." If God is the only creator, 
then those which are not His children are not real or actual 
men. It is the continued propagation of the mortal or false 
sense of man that continues the troubles to which humanity 
is heir. When the spiritual facts of being are understood, it 
will become apparent to all that man is already born and 
emanates from God. Error will then cease to usurp God's 
prerogative of creatorship. When humanity as a whole dis- 
cerns spiritually God's allness and man as the image and like- 
ness of eternal Life, Truth, and Love, there will be no more 
death, neither sorrow, nor sighing, for the former false 
material senses will have passed away. 

As recorded in the 20th chapter of St. Luke, Jesus de- 
clared: "The children of this world marry, and are given in 
marriage : but they which shall be accounted worthy to obtain 
that world, and the resurrection from the dead, neither marry, 
nor are given in marriage; neither can they die any more: 
for they are equal unto the angels ; and are the children of 
God, being the children of the resurrection." In some 
apocryphal sayings of Jesus, discovered a number of years 
ago in a fragment of old manuscript, and which are considered 
by scholars genuine, it is related that one of the disciples of 
Jesus asked him, "When will death cease?" His reply was, 
"When your women cease to bear children." 

In proportion as human birth ceases when it shall cease 
because of increasing spirituality and the consequent suppres- 
sion of carnality and fleshly impulse in human consciousness, 






136 REVELATION INTERPRETED VI : 3-8 

in that proportion death will cease also ; so the earth will not 
be depopulated as a result of the cessation of birth by reason 
of increased knowledge of God. As Mrs. Eddy has said in 
"Science and Health" (page 64) : "Until it is learned that 
God is the Father of all, marriage will continue ;" but "Spirit 
will ultimately claim its own, — all that really is, — and the 
voices of physical sense will be forever hushed." 

When the works of the flesh are brought to an end through 
the increase of spirituality, and children of the flesh or the 
counterfeit creation no longer appear, then man as the child 
of God will be more fully revealed on earth. Then will a 
petition in the Lord's prayer have received its answer, "Thy 
kingdom come, Thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven," 
and the prophecy of Jeremiah will be fulfilled : "And they 
shall teach no more every man his neighbor, and every man 
his brother, saying, Know the Lord : for they shall all know 
Me, from the least of them unto the greatest of them, saith 
the Lord." This is a forecast of the millennium, also fore- 
told in Revelation 20:1-3, and by Mrs. Eddy, in the following 
words : 

"Mortals can never understand God's creation while believ- 
ing that man is a creator. God's children already created will 
be cognized only as man finds the truth of being. Thus it is 
that the real, ideal man appears in proportion as the false and 
material disappears. No longer to marry or to be 'given in 
marriage' neither closes man's continuity nor his sense of 
increasing number in God's infinite plan. Spiritually to under- 
stand that there is but one creator, God, unfolds all creation, 
confirms the Scriptures, brings the sweet assurance of no 
parting, no pain, and of man deathless and perfect and eter- 
nal." ("Science and Health," p. 69.) 



VI: 9-11 SECTION II 137 



The Fifth Seal 

Verses 9-11 "And when he had opened the fifth seal, I saw under 
the altar the souls of them that were slain for the zvord of God, and 
for the testimony which they held: and they cried with a loud voice, 
saying, How long, O Lord, holy and true, dost thou not judge and 
avenge our blood on them thai dwell on the earth? And white robes 
were given unto every one of them; and it was said unto them, that they 
should rest yet for a little season, until their fellow-servants also and 
their brethren, that should be killed as they were, should be fulfilled." 

So persistent and subtle is the satanic activity, that it man- 
ages to find a field for its operations even in the mentalities of 
those so wedded to the Christ that they are willing to suffer 
martyrdom ; and so, until the very end of satanic rule, the one 
evil manages to oppose the Christ even in the camp of his own 
followers, arguing discouragement and revenge, if it can do 
nothing more. Discouragement and revenge are very great 
and subtle hindrances to spiritual progress for those who have 
not suffered martyrdom as well as for those who have. 

As has been said : " Discouragement is the more sinister 
because it is generally looked upon as harmless. In fable it is 
told that the devil one night held a sale and offered all his tools 
to any one who would pay his price. These were spread out 
for sale, some labeled hatred, and envy, and sickness, and 
sensuality, and despair, and crime, — a motley array. Apart 
from the rest lay a harmless-looking, wedge-shaped implement 
marked 'discouragement'. It was much worn and was priced 
above the rest, showing that it was held in high esteem by its 
owner. When asked the reason the devil replied, T can use 
this more easily than any of the others, for so few know it 
belongs to me. With this I can open doors that I cannot 
move with the others, and once I get inside I can use which- 
ever of them suits me best' ".* 



*Wm. R. Rathvon. 



138 REVELATION INTERPRETED VI: 9-11 

While the Apocalypse depicts discouragement and revenge 
as great hindrances to the complete triumph of the Christ, it 
seems to indicate, in verse n, that these sins of the human 
consciousness are comparatively excusable, since those mani- 
festing these satanic activities are given the "white robes" of 
purification and pardon, and are recommended to wait patiently 
until satanic activity has spent its force and is completely over- 
come. 



VI: 12-17 SECTION II 139 



The Sixth Seal 

Verses 12-17 "And I beheld when he had opened the sixth seal, and, 
lo, there was a great earthquake ; and the sun became black as sackcloth 
of hair, and the moon became as blood; and the stars of heaven fell unto 
the earth, even as a fig tree casteth her untimely figs, when she is shaken 
of a mighty wind. And the heaven departed as a scroll when it is rolled 
together; and every mountain and island were moved out of their places. 
And the kings of the earth, and the great men, and the rich men, and 
the chief captains, and the mighty men, and every bondman, and every 
free man, hid themselves in the dens and in the rocks of the mountains ; 
and said to the mountains and rocks, Fall on us, and hide us from the 
face of him that sitteth on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb: 
for the great day of his wrath is come ; and who shall be able to stand?" 

And when the sixth seal was opened, it revealed a mighty 
disturbance (''earthquake") as about to occur. It revealed 
that the light of divine Mind ("the sun') would be almost com- 
pletely obscured from human mental vision, and that the light 
of the Christ-consciousness ( <( the moon 3 ) would seem to 
change its character; and that many of those who would try 
to be Christians ("stars of heaven"), making some progress, 
would not be permitted to become mature in Christian faith 
and practice, as a result of false doctrine and schism, but would 
be cast from such heights as they should attain to in the 
mental realm ("heaven') back into materialism and false 
belief ("the earth"), even as a fig tree casteth off her unripe 
figs when she is shaken by a mighty wind. And harmony 
("the heaven") would depart as a scroll vanishes mostly from 
sight when it is rolled up ; and every established institution of 
society ("every mountain and island") would be moved out 
of their places. And the kings of the earth, and the great men, 
and the rich men, and the generals, and the mighty men, and 
every slave, and every free man, would be so smitten with con- 
sternation, because of the fear of death by war, assassination, 
or torture, that they would be inclined to hide themselves in 
the dens and in the rocks of the mountains, and would often do 
so; and they would be so crazed with fear over the mighty 



140 REVELATION INTERPRETED VI : 12-17 

upheavals and devastating strifes that would happen as a 
result of false doctrine and schism;, that they would gladly have 
the mountains and rocks fall on them, thinking, in their frenzy, 
that death might hide them from the terrible state of affairs 
which they would think was resulting from the zealous activity 
of Christ in warring against human ignorance, false belief, 
cruelty, tyranny, and general wrong-doing. 

When the air is full of dust, as in the hot days in summer, 
the moon assumes a bloody appearance. So, the phrase "the 
moon became as blood", in verse 12, suggests that the mental 
atmosphere of the human consciousness is charged with the' 
"dust" of false belief, thus causing the Christ-consciousness, 
which really emits mental "light" which is "white" and beau- 
tifully clear, to assume in human experience a seemingly bloody 
and baleful aspect. 

As indicated fully in Note 4 of the Introduction, the phrase 
"from the wrath of the Lamb" , in verse 16, would better be 
translated "from the passion of the Lamb", — that is from the 
zeal of the Christ to overcome evil with good, — which is the sense 
that should also be substituted for the word "wrath" in verse 
17. Many important Greek manuscripts give a plural genitive, 
ant on, instead of the singular, ant on, — according to which the 
rendering should be : For the great day of their passion is 
come. "Their" would thus refer both to "the Lamb" and to 
"him that sitteth on the throne" . Since divine Love, though 
not "wrath", is destructive to evil and evil-doers, the wicked 
very naturally seek refuge "from the face of him that sitteth 
on the throne" , as well as from the zeal of the Lamb, who but 
reflects the activity of divine Mind. 

The activities depicted in this sixth seal find their counter- 
part in the activities of the two-horned beast or "false prophet", 
spoken of at length in the last half of chapter 13. 



NOTES BY THE READER 141 



142 NOTES BY THE READER 



CHAPTER VII 

A Fore-vision of the First Resurrection 

Verses 1-3 "And after these things I saw four angels standing on 
the four corners of the earth, holding the four winds of the earth, that 
the zvind should not blow on the earth, nor on the sea, nor on any tree. 
And I saw another angel ascending from the east, having the seal of 
the living God: and he cried with a loud voice to the four angels, to 
whom it was given to hurt the earth and the sea, saying, Hurt not the 
earth, neither the sea, nor the trees, till we have sealed the servants of 
our God in their foreheads." 

"After these things'' . This is a literal rendering of the 
Greek, where the English idiom would be, "After this." 

The "four angels standing on the four corners of the earth" 
may be regarded as the same four which are spoken of in 
Matthew 24:31, who are to "gather together his (God's) elect 
from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other." 
Compare Matthew 13:39, 41, and 2 Thes. 1:7, 8, where the 
angels are represented as ministers of God's power. 

"The four winds of the earth" (verse 1) seem to symbolize 
the self-destroying forces of evil. Being from the four points 
of the compass, they indicate or stand for all the winds there 
are, and so symbolize all the destroying forces of evil there are. 

These destroying forces are represented as being held in 
check for a time by four good angels, so that they cannot blow 
destructively on either the earth, or the sea, or any tree, until 
the servants of God shall be sealed in their foreheads, — the 
inference being that, after this sealing, the destroying forces 
will be loosed. In other words, John foresees that at some 
future period there will be a lull in the conflict between good 
and evil. This holding of the forces of evil in check cannot be 
intended to represent a continuing state of affairs in the mental 
realm, but must refer to some special period of quiescence in 
the world, such as history has not recorded up to the present 
time. Taking the customary Apocalyptic interpretation for 

143 



144 REVELATION INTERPRETED VII : 1-3 

"the earth" and "the sea' and "any tree" , these three verses 
forecast a condition when no normal human activity, emotion, 
or institution is destroyed or "hurt" , with the implication, how- 
ever, that all these are strictly in abeyance, while distinctly 
spiritual activities are in the ascendency. It should be noted 
that satanic activities are those which "hurt" or bring discord 
into all normal human functions and activities, both physical 
and mental, — such as human procreation, digestion, breathing, 
circulation, secretion, etc., (all of which are symbolized by "the 
earth"), and such as human love and other normal emotions 
(which are symbolized by "the sea"), and also those other 
activities and institutions which are symbolized by "trees". 
Ultimately, the divine Mind will destroy all these, but it will 
do so as painlessly as light overcomes darkness ; but until the 
time is fully come for these to be overcome and removed from 
human activity by the enforcement of divine Mind, that Mind 
has a tendency to render all these activities strong, normal, and 
harmonious, while it is only satanic influence, such as tempta- 
tion to excess and the like, that brings weakness, disease and 
discord among them. During the period spoken of in the three 
verses which we are considering, there is to be no discord 
among these human activities, nor are they to be rendered 
incapable of use or blotted out of experience, but they are sim- 
ply to be held to a minimum of activity while the servants of 
our God are being sealed in their foreheads. 

The only period of the type here referred to, indicated in 
the Apocalypse, and the only like period indicated by a scien- 
tific forecasting of the working out of humanity's problem, is 
that described in chapter 20, verses 1-6, where satan is repre- 
sented as bound for a thousand years, at the beginning of which 
those "thai were beheaded for the witness of Jesus, and for 
the word of God, and zvhich had not worshipped the beast, 
neither his image" (20:4), are resurrected (20:5), and "live 
and reign with Christ (that is, with the Truth in conscious- 
ness) a thousand years". These saints are not described in 
the same language as is employed in describing those of chapter 



VII : 1-3 SECTION II 145 

7 (see verses 14-17 of that chapter), but they are probably the 
same company of saints or redeemed ones, since, in order to 
be redeemed, men would have to get the victory over every 
kind of tribulation and temptation. This same company is 
described in chapter 5, verses 9-12 ; it is mentioned in chapter 
11:18, and this same company is seen (14:1-5) before the 
judgment and harvest of the world (14:6-20) ; and yet again 
(15:2, 4) before the pouring out of the seven last vials. It 
may be that St. John got from the choruses of the Greek 
dramas the idea of introducing at frequent intervals this com- 
pany of the redeemed, with their songs of praise and triumph. 
The recurring visions of the redeemed, enjoying the fruits of 
victory, tend to have, in the mind of the reader, an encouraging 
and uplifting effect, in the midst of the recital of conflicts and 
woes. For this reason, they have been called "consolatory 
visions". 

The sealing of these servants of God in their foreheads may, 
and probably does, refer to their resurrection from the dead in 
"the first resurrection" (20:5), which is the special sign of 
their sainthood and of their redemption. "Blessed and holy is 
he that hath part in the first resurrection: on such the second 
death hath no power, but they shall be priests of God and of 
Christ, and shall reign with him a thousand years" (20:6). 
They are "sealed in their foreheads'^ ; that is, they are given 
the demonstrable understanding that life is eternal, by being 
resurrected. As further evidence that their resurrection is 
their sealing, consider Paul's saying in Romans 8:23, which 
in the Twentieth Century New Testament is rendered : "We 
ourselves, though we have already a first gift of the Spirit — 
we ourselves are inwardly groaning', while we eagerly await 

t Mr. F. L. Rawson suggests with regard to the phrase "sealed in 
their foreheads" that, in case a man has learned to do mental work on a 
spiritual basis, one can know this fact "by the brightness and softness of 
the look in his eye." On the other hand, "the mark of the beast" (chap. 
13:16) is the hard metallic look in the eyes and the hard, horny char- 
acter of the hands." 



146 REVELATION INTERPRETED VII ': 1-3 

our full adoption as sons — the redemption of our bodies." The 
authorized version is : "Even we ourselves groan within our- 
selves, waiting for the adoption, to wit, the redemption of our 
body". The redemption of the body evidently is the healing 
of it in the case of sickness, or the resurrection of it in the 
case of death. This sealing or resurrection takes place while 
satan is bound. Since, as already indicated, "the four winds" 
(7:1) are all of the destroying forces of evil, the holding of 
them in check is the same as the binding of satan. While satan 
is bound, it is fair to assume that nothing normally human will 
be "hurt". But the implication is, that after "the servants of 
our God are sealed in their foreheads', the winds, the destruc- 
tive forces of evil, are to be loosed ; and in chapter 20 :y, 8, we 
are told that "when the thousand years are expired, satan shall 
be loosed out of his prison, and shall go out to deceive the 
nations which are in the four quarters of the earth" (that is, 
just where the four winds of the earth, of chapter 7:1, are held 
in check for a time, and are then loosed). The nations are 
gathered by satan for battle against the saints and the city of 
God ; and so discord and tumult again reign for a time, but 
finally satan and the forces, of evil are overthrown and "cast 
into the lake of fire and brimstone, where they shall be tor- 
mented (Greek, rubbed against the touch-stone) day and night 
for ever and ever"* ; that is, they shall be utterly destroyed. 
After this occurs the second or general resurrection, and then 
the destruction of the sense of matter, and then full realiza- 
tion of the spiritual city of God as depicted in chapter 21. 
Questions about the first and second resurrections, the loosing 
of satan for a season after the millennium, the final judgment, 
and what occasions these events, will be discussed much more 
fully in the notes on chapter 20, which see. 

The "angel ascending from the east, having the seal of the 
living God" is undoubtedly the Christ, who says to the four 

* Greek, "unto the ages of the ages" ; that is, until the end of time, 
but not in eternity, or "forever." 



VII: 4-15 SECTION II 147 

angels, Do not let the self-destroying forces of evil get loose to 
make any further disturbance, "till we have sealed the servants 
of our God in their forehead'' The four angels are four good 
angels, not four destructive ones. It is not in their power to 
"hurt" , except in the negative way of letting go their supposed 
hold upon the self-destroying forces of evil, which they will 
only do at the proper time in order that evil may go to self- 
destruction. "The east" , being the region of the dawn of 
material light, symbolizes divine Mind, the Source of spiritual 
light, from which the Christ "ascends" . 

"The four angels standing on the four corners of the earth", 
considered collectively, represent the spiritual factor in human 
consciousness, enforcing the law of God, the law of harmony, 
against the "four winds of the earth". These four angels, col- 
lectively, represent Immanuel, the Holy Spirit, the militant 
activity of God and His Christ in human consciousness. 
Because this human consciousness has formerly been in the 
service of the world, it is symbolized by the world-sign "four" ; 
otherwise, the activity of the divine Mind would doubtless have 
been here symbolized by seven angels, rather than "four". 
These "four Angels" may very properly be considered as 
synonymous with the "four beasts" of chapter IV, both, col- 
lectively, being the Holy Spirit. 

Verse 4 "And I heard the number of them which were sealed: and 
there were sealed an hundred and forty and four thousand of all the 
tribes of the children of Israel." 

The "hundred and forty and four thousand" surely repre- 
sent redeemed Israel. The number is symbolic, signifying the 
conquerors manifesting God, and stands for a great host. Ulti- 
mately "all Israel shall be saved" (Romans 11 126), but some 
not until the final resurrection. In verse 9, the redeemed from 
the nations of the Gentiles are spoken of, a "great multitude". 
Ultimately, all the Gentiles are to be redeemed. "This is good 
and acceptable in the sight of God our Saviour, zvho will have 
all men to be saved, and to come unto the knowledge of the 



148 REVELATION INTERPRETED VII : 16, 17 

truth" (i Tim. 2:3, 4), but the complete redemption of many 
will not be effected until the last judgment, the final separation 
between truth and error. 

Verses 16, 17 "They shall hanger no more, neither thirst any more: 
neither shall the sun light on them, nor any heat. For the Lamb which 
is in the midst of the throne shall feed them, and shall lead them unto 
living fountains of waters: and God shall wipe away all tears from their 
eyes." 

Whoever eats of material food and drinks of material water 
very soon hungers and thirsts again. But whoever thoroughly 
assimilates divine Truth and Love into his consciousness has 
them as continuing possessions, which never pass away, which 
never have to be relearned, but which are always ready in con- 
sciousness for use. Since the terms "consciousness" and "life" 
are practically synonymous, Truth and Love, which are the 
support of consciousness, are the support of life, and are 
"living fountains of waters" ' . 



NOTES BY THE READER 149 









150 NOTES BY THE READER 



VIII : 1 SECTION II 151 



The Seventh Seal 

Chapter 8, verse i "And when he had opened the seventh seal, there 
was silence in heaven about the space of half an hour." 

The interpretation of this verse will be made plain a couple 
of pages farther on. It is omitted here to save repetition. 

As stated in the Introduction, it seems very clear that 
St. John wrote this Book on the assumption that after Christ 
Jesus had disappeared in the Ascension, the impersonal Christ 
would be, and in St. John's day had already begun to be, rein- 
carnated in the Christian church, and that, as incarnated in the 
church, he would, in conquering the world, go through a kind 
and order of experiences almost exactly duplicating the leading 
experiences of Christ Jesus during his earthly ministry. This, 
apparently, was John's basis, at least in part, for the dramatic 
action of the Apocalypse. We have now arrived at a point 
where we can illustrate and justify this statement. 

Christ Jesus spent a large portion of the earlier part of his 
ministry in instructing a company of personal disciples. Like- 
wise, the Apocalypse opens by representing the impersonal 
Christ instructing the impersonal churches, symbolized as seven 
churches of Asia, through the medium of his servant John. 
Near the close of his ministry, Christ Jesus took Peter, James 
and John into the Mount of Transfiguration, and showed them 
a wonderful vision, concerning which they were commanded 
to keep silent "until the Son of Man should be risen from the 
dead." Likewise, after directing John to send letters of instruc- 
tion to the churches, the impersonal Christ takes John into the 
Mount of Vision, and gives him a fore-view of the Millennium 
and of things which are to transpire before it, but represents 
these things as "sealed" until after "the seventh angel" should 
have begun to sound his message. Soon after the experience 
of the Mount of Transfiguration, Christ Jesus had his final 
struggle with satan, represented in the personal ambition, the 
greed and selfishness, the materialism, sensuality and false 
doctrine of the Jewish and Roman authorities, backed up to a 



152 REVELATION INTERPRETED VIII : 1 

large extent by the common people, who were handled by satan 
against Jesus without knowing what they did. As a result of 
this struggle, Christ Jesus was seemingly put to death, and his 
influence was seemingly removed from the sphere of human 
activity. Likewise, after the impersonal Christ takes John 
into the Mount of Vision, he is represented, under the sym- 
bolism of the seals, as meeting in conflict on the field of human 
consciousness the same series of satanic influences above men- 
tioned, with the result that, apparently, the Christ-activity is 
driven out of the field of human consciousness (the sun 
becomes as black as sackcloth, and the moon becomes as blood, 
and the stars of heaven fall, — all spiritual light is blotted out), 
and the impersonal Christ seems to human sense dead. Fol- 
lowing his apparent death, Christ Jesus arose, and spent a 
period of about "forty days" with his disciples, before the 
Ascension ; this was apparently a time of happy association, 
free from conflict with the world. So, too, following the 
apparent death of the impersonal Christ, as above described, 
he is represented as alive and active again in the millennia] 
scene depicted in chapter 7, where he has happy association, 
free from discord, with his Father and with his disciples. 
About forty days after his resurrection from the dead, Christ 
Jesus overcame the flesh and ascended above the sense of 
matter into the realm of Spirit and eternal peace. Likewise, 
the opening of the seventh seal, spoken of in chapter 8:1, dis- 
closes, though in a somewhat hidden manner, the Christ as 
finally triumphant over all discord, so that there is "silence 
[peace] in heaven [the mental realm] about the space of half 
an hour". An "hour" is probably here taken as the symbol of 
the whole of the time-period, the prophecy being that, during 
the last half of it, the Christ will rule in "silence" or peace. 
This is the period of the millennium, immediately following the 
"first resurrection". 

This coming of the impersonal Christ into the field of 
human consciousness may be considered in several ways. In 
the first place* the Christ-idea comes into the individual con- 



VIII : 1 SECTION II 153 

sciousness, tries to instruct it, takes it into the Mount of Vision, 
shows it wonderful ideals, but meets in the individual con- 
sciousness self-assertiveness, selfishness, sensuality and mate- 
rialism, discouragement and revenge, false doctrine and super- 
stition, and, by the activity of these combined, often seems to 
be more or less completely driven out, but, in the end, regains 
a hold upon the individual consciousness and will conquer and 
save it. 

Again, the impersonal Christ comes into the consciousness 
of the people of some section of the world, with a partial reve- 
lation of Truth, and this partial activity of the Christ goes 
through about the same line of experiences as above described. 
Such, for instance, was the fate of the Reformation move- 
ment, to a large extent. Every new impartation of religious 
truth seems purer, more vigorous and militant, in the first half 
century of its activity; then its human organization seems to 
become gradually more and more worldly and to sacrifice the 
spirit for the form, until vigorous spiritual life seems nearly 
to die out of it. Then the Spirit is likely to break out afresh, 
and this usually results in the formation of a new organization. 

Considering the Christ-activity in its largest sweep, it would 
seem that the impersonal Christ, the true spiritual life, has been 
virtually dead, even among so-called Christian nations, for 
many decades, while materialism in belief and practice, human 
ambition, commercialism and corporate greed, sensuality and 
worldly lust, discouragement on the part of the comparatively 
few earnest Christians, and false and schismatic doctrine, have 
been markedly in the ascendency. It seems to the author that 
this period of spiritual poverty through which we have been 
passing is the final apparent death of the impersonal Christ, 
the spiritual consciousness, in the world of humanity as a 
whole, and that the Christ-consciousness, at the opening of this 
twentieth century, is being brought into renewed and vigorous 
activity in the world, never again to depart, but to unfold and 
increase uninterruptedly until the Millennium is ushered in. 



154 NOTES BY THE READER 



REVISED TRANSLATION AND SUGGEST- 
IVE PARAPHRASE 

SECTION II 

THE VISION OF THE SEVEN SEALED LETTERS 

Chapter IV. A Vision of the Millennium 
Another Revelation in the Realm of Consciousness 



Amended Revised Version 
i After these things I saw, 
and behold, a door opened 
in heaven, and the first voice 
which I heard, a voice 
as of a trumpet speaking 
with me, one saying, Come 
up hither and I will shew 
thee the things which must 
come to pass hereafter. 

2 Straightway I was in the 
Spirit: and behold, there 
was a throne set in heaven, 
and one sitting upon the 

3 throne; and he that sat was 
to look upon like a jasper 
stone and a sardius : and 
there was a rainbow round 
about the throne, like an 
emerald to look upon. 



Suggestive Paraphrase 
After this I was permitted to enter 
the realm of Mind, and I received a 
powerful mental impulse which urged 
me to rise to a higher plane of 
thought, promising that I should be- 
hold at once the things which men 
will experience hereafter. 

And when I realized the things of 
Spirit, I saw Mind enthroned su- 
preme. 

And I perceived the glory * and the 
justice t of God: also I perceived 
God's mercy, — that is, love ultimating 
in final peace for men, — symbolized 
bv the rainbow. 



* Symbolized by the many-hued jasper 
or opal. 

t Symbolized by the blood-red sardius. 



Symbolic Description of the Holy Ghost 



4 And round about the 
throne were four and twenty 
thrones : and upon the 
thrones I saw four and 
twenty elders sitting, ar- 
rayed in white garments ; 
and on their heads crowns 

5 of gold. And out of _ the 
throne proceed lightnings 
and voices and thunders. 
And there were seven lamps 
of fire burning before the 
throne, which are the seven 

6 Spirits of God; and before 
the throne, as it. were a 
glassy sea like unto crystal ; 
and in the midst of the 
throne, and round about the 
throne, four living creatures 
full of eyes before and be- 

7 hind. And the first creature 
was like a lion, and the sec- 
ond creature like a calf, and 



God is enthroned in spiritualized 
and redeemed human consciousness, 
which, reflecting and enforcing the 
law of God, constitutes the Holy 
Spirit, and is symbolized as ''the 
throne" of God. The Holy Spirit is 
further represented as consisting of 
all right ideas, symbolized by four 
and twenty elders, manifesting purity, 
and crowned with the authority of 
Principle. The Holy Spirit manifests 
the swiftness, power and clearness of 
God's judgments, and makes God 
manifest to human sense as Spirit, 
Mind, Soul, Principle, Love, Truth, 
Life (seven lamps), thus illumining 
human consciousness and dispelling 
error. The Holy Spirit is further 
represented as being changeless and 
immovable as glass, and transparent 
as crystal. It is also depicted as om- 
niscient, and as being active in four 
leading phases; namely, moral cour- 

155 



156 



REVELATION INTERPRETED iv : 8-V. : 3 



Amended Revised Version 
the third creature had a 
face as of a man, and the 
fourth creature was like a 

5 flying eagle. And the four 
living creatures, having each 
one of them six wings, are 
full of eyes round about and 
within : and they have no 
rest day and night, saying. 
Holy, holy, holy, is the Lord 
God, the Almighty, which 
was and which is and which 
is to come. 



N Suggestive Paraphrase 
age, self-sacrifice, spiritual intelli- 
gence, and spiritual aspiration, which 
fully equip human consciousness for 
the service of God. These four ac- 
tivities of the Spirit are described, 
through symbolic language, as being 
omnipresent and all-observing, and as 
continually worshipping the eternal 
God. 



9 And when the living creat- 
ures shall give glory and 
honour and thanks to him 
that sitteth on the throne, to 
him that liveth for ever and 

io ever, the four and twenty 
elders shall fall down before 
him that sitteth on the 
throne, and shall worship 
him that liveth for ever and 
ever, and shall cast their 
crowns before the throne, 

n saying, Worthy art thou, our 
Lord and our God, to re- 
ceive the glory and the 
honour and the power : for 
thou didst create all things, 
and because of thy will they 
are and were created. 



God's Power and Glory Proclaimed 

And when these four chief activi- 
ties of the Holy Spirit give glory and 
honor and thanks to the ever living- 
God, all the right ideas (four and 
twenty elders) do the same, because 
they are included in the four chief 
manifestations of the Spirit. 



Chapter V. The Sealed Book and the Lamb 
The Book of Coming Events 



i And I saw in the right 
hand of him that sat on the 
throne a book written within 
and on the back, close sealed 

2 with seven seals. And I saw 
a strong angel proclaiming 
with a great voice, Who is 
worthy to open the book, 
and to loose the seals there- 

3 of? And no one in the 
heaven, or on the earth, or 
under the earth, was able to 
open the book, or to look 
thereon. 



And I saw that through spiritual 
discernment alone the problem of 
human redemption is to be solved, 
the difficulties attending the solution 
being the sins of material sense. And 
there came to my thought a very in- 
sistent inquiry, — What mentality is 
sufficiently intelligent and pure to un- 
cover these sins of sense and loose 
their hold upon humanity? And 
there was no human mentality suffi- 
ciently free from mortal dross to 
open up this revelation, or even to 
see its general scope. 



V:4-10 



TEXT AND PARAPHRASE 



157 



Only the Redeemer Could Open the Book 



Amended Revised Version 

4 And I wept much, because 
no one was found worthy to 
open the book, or to look 

5 thereon : and one of the 
elders saith unto me. Weep 
not : behold, the Lion that 
is of the tribe of Judah, the 
Root of David, hath over- 
come, to open the book and 
the seven seals thereof. 



Suggestive Paraphrase 
And I was much grieved, because it 
did not seem likely that there would 
be revealed that which I knew could 
be revealed, if there were one suffi- 
ciently spiritual to discern it. And 
one of the chief manifestations of 
Mind made known to me that there 
was no need for grief, because the 
Christ-consciousness is sufficient to 
uncover every falsity of error, and to 
reveal the things of Spirit. 



A Vision of the Lamb of God 



6 And I saw in the midst 
of the throne and of the 
four living creatures, and 
in the midst of the elders, a 
Lamb standing, as though it 
had been slain, having seven 
horns, and seven eyes, which 
are the seven Spirits of 
God, sent forth into all the 

7 earth. And he came, and he 
taketh it out of the right 
hand of him that sat on the 

8 throne. And when he had 
taken the book, the four 
living creatures and the 
four and twenty elders fell 
down before the Lamb, hav- 
ing each one a harp, and 
golden bowls full of in- 
cense, which are the prayers 

9 of the saints. And they 
sing a new song, saying. 
Worthy art thou to take the 
book, and to open the seals 
thereof : for thou wast 
slain, and didst purchase 
unto God with thy blood 

io men of every tribe, and 
tongue, and people, and na- 
tion, and madest them to be 
unto our God a kingdom 
and priests; and they reign 
upon the earth. 



And I saw divine Mind and the 
Holy Spirit, and all redeemed con- 
sciousness expressed as the media- 
torial Christ-consciousness, appearing 
as though it had been sacrificed, hav- 
ing the power and the discernment 
emanating from the seven primary 
manifestations of God, and going 
forth to enlighten all humanity. And 
this Christ made ready to show the 
things embraced in the understanding 
of divine Mind. And as this Christ 
within showed a readiness to reveal 
great things heretofore hidden, it 
seemed as if all those in communion 
with God humbled themselves and 
prepared themselves to sing, and to 
express the holiest thoughts of praise 
and adoration. And they sang a new 
song, saying, The Christ-conscious- 
ness is worthy to uncover the deep 
and hidden things, and to redeem to 
God through his eternal life men out 
of every kindred, and tongue, and 
people, and nation ; and to make 
them a kingdom of priests in the 
service of our God, that they may oc- 
cupy high spiritual places among men. 



158 



REVELATION INTERPRETED V:11-VI:4 



His Power and Gfbry Proclaimed 



Amended Revised Version 
ii And I saw, and I heard a 
voice of many angels round 
about the throne and the liv- 
ing creatures and the elders ; 
and the number of them was 
ten thousand times ten thou- 
sand, and thousands of 

12 thousands ; saying with a 
great voice, Worthy is the 
Lamb that hath been slain 
to receive the power and 
riches, and wisdom, and 
might, and honour, and 

13 glory, and blessing. And 
every created thing which is 
in heaven, and on the earth, 
and under the earth, and on 
the sea, and all things that 
are in them, heard I saying, 
Unto him that sitteth on the 
throne, and unto the Lamb, 
be the blessing, and the 
honour, and the glory, and 
the dominion, unto the ages 

14 of the ages. And the four 
living creatures said, Amen, 
And the elders fell down 
and worshipped. 



Suggestive Paraphrase 
And it seemed as if an innumerable 
host of spiritual mentalities* were as- 
sociated with divine Mind, and the 
Holy Spirit, and the elders ; pro- 
claiming mightily, that the media- 
torial Christ-consciousness, which had 
exemplified the spirit of sacrifice, is 
worthy to express power, and good, 
and wisdom, and strength, and glory, 
and blessing. And it seemed as if 
all living creatures, both in the mental 
and in the material realm, were re- 
deemed, and were joining in the 
chorus, ascribing blessing, and honor, 
and glory, and power, unto God and 
His Christ, world without end. And 
the Holy Spirit said Amen. And all 
the manifestations of Mind humbled 
themselves in adoration. 



* Strictly, these may be right ideas, 
instead of "spiritual mentalities." In 
either case, it is interesting to note that 
they are represented as having but one 
"voice," rather than voices. This is be- 
cause they are considered collectively, 
reflecting the one mind, whose utterance 
is their utterance. 



Chapter VI. The Opening of the Seals 
The First Seal. The Militant Christ 

And I realized that the Christ-con- 



1 And I saw when the Lamb 
opened one of the seven 
seals, and I heard one of 
the four living creatures 
saying as with a voice of 

2 thunder, Come. And I saw, 
and behold, a white horse, 
and he that sat thereon had 
a bow ; and there was given 
unto him a crown; and he 
came forth conquering and 
to conquer. 



sciousness was opening to me the 
first of the great revelations, and a 
manifestation of the Spirit cried to 
me with a loud voice, Behold. And I 
saw that the Christ-consciousness, 
carried by pure thought, and en- 
dowed with power, was going forth 
in the world, conquering and to con- 
quer, until it should have won the 
victory over all evil. 



The Second Seal. Human Will and Ambition 

And when he opened the And a second manifestation of the 



second seal, I heard the sec- 
ond living creature saying, 
4 Come. And another horse 



Spirit called to me, saying, Behold 
another revelation of things to come. 
And I saw that the Christ-conscious- 



VI :4-10 



SECTION II 



159 



Amended Revised Version 
came forth, a red horse: 
and to him that sat thereon 
it was given to take peace 
from the earth, and that 
they should slay one an- 
other : and there was given 
unto him a great sword. 



Suggestive Paraphrase 
ness, militant in the world, will be 
opposed in its work by self-assertive- 
ness or human will which takes peace 
from the earth, and causes men to 
kill one another, the emblem of which 
is the sword. 



The Third Seal. 

And when he opened the 
third seal I heard the third 
living creature saying, 
Come. And I saw, and be- 
hold, a black horse ; and he 
that sat thereon had a bal- 
ance in his hand. And T 
heard as it were a voice in 
the midst of the four living 
creatures saying, A measure 
of wheat for a penny, and 
three measures of barley 
for a penny; and the oil 
and the wine hurt thou not. 

The Fourth Seal. 

And when he opened the 
fourth seal, I heard the 
voioe of the fourth living 
creature saying, Come. And 
I saw, and behold, a pale 
horse : and he that sat upon 
him, his name was Death ; 
and Hades followed with 
him. And there was given 
unto them authority over 
the fourth part of the earth, 
to kill with sword, and with 
famine, and with pestilence, 
and by the wild beasts of 
the earth. 



Human Selfishness and Greed 

And a third manifestation of the 
Spirit called to me, saying, Behold a 
further revelation. And I saw that 
the work of the Christ in the world 
will be hindered by materialism and 
selfish stupidity, producing in human 
consciousness a great famine of "the 
bread of life," of the demonstrable 
knowledge of God and of His Christ, 
though unable to suppress spiritual 
aspiration and consecration to spirit- 
ual ideals, which hold humanity 
anchored against the tide of material- 
ism until it has run its course and 
become inert. 

Materiality and Sensuality 

And a fourth manifestation of the 
Spirit said to me, Behold yet another 
revelation of things to come. And I 
saw that the work of the Christ 
among men will be hindered by sen- 
suality and worldly lust, which rep- 
resent and occasion conditions of 
death and hell. They largely control 
human consciousness, and induce war, 
famine, pestilence, and persecution, 
both mental and physical, thus reap- 
ing a wholesale harvest of death. 



The Fifth Seal. 

And when he opened 



Revenge and Discouragement 



the 



fifth seal, I saw underneath 
the altar the souls of them 
that had been slain for the 
word of God, and for the 
testimony which they held : 
io and they cried with a great 
voice, saying, How long, O 
Master, the holy and true, 



And when the mediatorial Christ- 
consciousness had removed the fifth 
obstacle in the way of perceiving 
what was to be revealed, I saw the 
martyrs, who had been slain for their 
witness of Christ, hiding, as it were, 
under the protection of God, — so 
fierce and long-continued was the on- 
slaught of evil : and I seemed to hear 



160 



REVELATION INTERPRETED VI : 11-17 



Amended Revised Version 
dost thou not judge and 
avenge our blood on them 
that dwell on the earth? 
ii And there was given them 
to each one a white robe ; 
and it was said unto them, 
that they should rest yet for 
a little time, until their fel- 
low-servants also and their 
brethren, which should be 
killed even as they were, 
should be fulfilled. 



N Suggestive Paraphrase 
them crying, as with a loud voice, 
How long shall the wicked and the 
persecutors go unpunished?* And 
righteousness will be given them in 
place of these satanic arguments, and 
they will be told to wait until the evil 
spirit of persecution in the world has 
spent itself. 



* Discouragement and revenge will 
hinder the work of the Christ, even in the 
ranks of his professed followers. 



The Sixth Seal. False Doctrine 



12 And I saw when he 
opened the sixth seal, and 
there was a great earth- 
quake ; and the sun became 
black as sackcloth of hair, 
and the whole moon became 

13 as blood; and the stars of 
the heaven fell unto the 
earth, as a fig tree casteth 
her unripe figs, when she is 
shaken of a great wind. 

14 And the heaven was re- 
moved as a scroll when it 
is rolled up ; and every 
mountain and island were 
moved out of their places. 

15 And the kings of the earth, 
and the princes, and the 
chief captains, and the rich, 
and the strong, and every 
bondman and freeman, hid 
themselves in the caves and 
in the rocks of the moun- 

16 tains ; and they say to the 
mountains and to the rocks, 
Fall on us, and hide us from 
the face of him that sitteth 
on the throne, and from the 

17 wrath* of the Lamb : for the 
great day of their wrath is 
come; and who is able to 
stand ? 



* This should be rendered zeal 
of the Lamb, which automatically 
excludes unrepentant mentality 
from harmony and forces it back 
upon itself to its own torment 
and destruction. 



And when the sixth illumination 
came to me, I saw that the greatest 
hindrance to the progress of Christ 
among men will be false doctrine and 
schism in the church. As a result of 
this, there will be great mental dis- 
turbances ; and the light of Truth 
will be completely obscured, and 
men's sense of religion, which usually 
reflects God and is mild and merci- 
ful, will become contentious and san- 
guinary ; and many of those who had 
been trying, with some success, to be 
spiritually minded, will fall back into 
materiality. And harmony will de- 
part as the writing of a scroll van- 
ishes when it is rolled up ; and all 
established institutions of society will 
be moved out of their accustomed 
courses. And all classes of men will 
be so struck with consternation, from 
fear of death by war, assassination, 
or torture, that they will be inclined 
to hide themselves in the dens and 
rocks of the mountains ; and they will 

be so crazed with fear over the 

mighty upheavals and devastating 
strifes that will come to pass as the 
result of false doctrine and schism, 
that they would gladly have the 
mountains and rocks fall on them, 
thinking in their frenzy that death 
may hide them from the terrible re- 
sults of the self-punishment of human 
ignorance, false belief, cruelty, tyran- 
ny, and general wrong-doing. 



VII : 1-7 



SECTION II 



161 



Chapter VII. A Forevision of the First Resurrection 
A Veiled Vision of the First Resurrection 



Amended Revised Version 
i After this I saw four 
angels standing at the four 
corners of the earth, hold- 
ing the four winds of the 
earth, that no wind should 
blow on the earth, or on the 

2 sea, or upon any tree. And 
I saw another angel ascend 
from the sunrising, having 
the seal of the living God : 
and he cried with a great 
voice to the four angels, to 
whom it was given to hurt 

3 the earth and the sea, say- 
ing, Hurt not the earth, 
neither the sea, nor the 
trees, till we shall have 
sealed the servants of our 
God on their foreheads. 



Suggestive Paraphrase 
_ And after this I had a vision of a 
time when, for a season, all the self- 
destroying forces of evil shall be re- 
strained from injuring any normal 
human activity, emotion, or institu- 
tion. And the dawning Christ-con- 
sciousness which bears witness to the 
living God cried out to all the forces 
of good, saying, Do not allow the 
forces of evil to hurt any normal 
human function, feeling, nor institu- 
tion, until those who serve God shall 
have attained a demonstrable under- 
standing that life is eternal* 

And those who will be sealed, or 
resurrected, will be those who have 
conquered mortal sense and who 
manifest God. 



* See Rev. 20 :6 and Romans 8 :23. 



The 144,000 



4 And I heard the number 
of them which were sealed, 
a hundred and forty and 
four thousand, sealed out of 
every tribe of the children 
of Israel. 

5 Of the tribe of Judah 
were sealed twelve thou- 
sand : 

Of the tribe of Reuben 
twelve thousand : 

Of the tribe of Gad 
twelve thousand : 

6 Of the tribe of Asher 
twelve thousand : 

Of the tribe of Naphtali 
twelve thousand : 

Of the tribe of Manasseh 
twelve thousand : 

7 Of the tribe of Simeon 
twelve thousand : 

Of the tribe of Levi 
twelve thousand : 



Note. — The sealing of the servants 
of God in their foreheads seems to 
refer to their resurrection from the 
dead in "the first resurrection" 
(20:5), which is the special sign of 
their saint-hood and of their redemp- 
tion. "Blessed and holy is he that 
hath part in the first resurrection : on 
such the second death hath no power, 
but they shall be priests of God and 
of Christ, and shall reign with him 
a thousand years" (20:6). They are 
"sealed in their foreheads" ; that is, 
they are given the demonstrable un- 
derstanding that life is eternal, by 
being resurrected. As further evi- 
dence that their resurrection is their 
sealing, consider Paul's saying in 
Romans 8 :2s : "Even we ourselves 
groan within ourselves, waiting for 
the adoption, to wit, the redemption 
of our body." The "redemption of 
the body" is evidently the healing of 
it in case of sickness or the resurrec- 
tion of it in the case of death. This 



162 



REVELATION INTERPRETED VII : 8-14 



Amended Revised Version 

Of the tribe of Issachar 
twelve thousand : 

Of the tribe of Zabulon 
twelve thousand : 

Of the tribe of Joseph 
twelve thousand : 

Of the tribe of Benjamin 
were sealed twelve thou- 
sand. 



Suggestive Paraphrase 
sealing or resurrecting takes place 
while satan is bound; that is, while 
the four destructive winds are re- 
strained. "Twelve" signifies "mani- 
festing God," and a "thousand" sig- 
nifies "conquerors." (See Note 2 of 
Introduction.) Hence, the signifi- 
cance of "twelve thousand" and of 
144,000 is readily apparent. 



A Vast Throng of Gloriously Triumphant Saints 



9 After these things I saw, 
and behold, a great multi- 
tude, which no man could 
number, out of every na- 
tion, and of all tribes and 
peoples and tongues, stand- 
ing before the throne and 
before the Lamb, arrayed in 
white robes, and palms in 

10 their hands ; and they cry 
with a great voice, saying, 
Salvation unto our God 
which sitteth on the throne, 

11 and unto the Lamb. And all 
the angels were standing 
round about the throne, and 
about the elders and the 
four living creatures; and 
they fell before the throne 
on their faces, and wor- 

12 shipped God, saying, Amen : 
Blessing, and glory, and 
wisdom, and thanksgiving, 
and honour, and power, and 
might, be unto our God for 
ever and ever. Amen. 



After this, I had a vision of the 
redeemed gentiles rejoicing, and 
ascribing their salvation unto God 
and His Christ, enthroned in the 
power of good. 

And I beheld all the conscious 
ideas or spiritual entities of the men- 
tal realm associated with the living 
creatures and with the elders in the 
position of power, humbling them- 
selves before creative Mind from 
which they spring, saying, The 
eternal and final word is : Let bless- 
ing, and glory, and wisdom, and 
honor, and thanksgiving, and power, 
and might, be ascribed unto our God, 
world without end. So let it be. 



Full Salvation Through the Lamb 



13 And one of the elders 
answered, saying unto me, 
These which are arrayed in 
the white robes, who are 
they, and whence came 

14 they? And I say unto him, 
My lord, thou knowest. And 
he said to me, These are 
they which come out of the 
great tribulation, and they 
washed their robes, and 



And one of the higher faculties in 
my mediatorial consciousness raised 
the question, Who are these redeemed 
ones and where do they come from? 
and I said, Why do you ask me; for 
you know already. And he said to 
me, These are they which came out 
of sore trials, and have purified their 
mentalities by living the life of Christ. 



VII : 15- VIII : 1 



SECTION II 



163 



Amended Revised Version 
made them white in the 

15 blood of the Lamb. There- 
fore are they before the 
throne of God ; and they 
serve him day and night in 
his temple : and he that sit- 
teth on the throne shall 
spread his tabernacle over 

16 them. They shall hunger no 
more, neither thirst any 
more; neither shall the sun 
strike upon them, nor any 

17 heat; for the Lamb which 
is in the midst of the throne 
shall be their shepherd, and 
shall guide them unto 
fountains of waters of life : 
and God shall wipe away 
every tear from their eyes. 



Suggestive Paraphrase 
This is the reason that they live in 
the presence and power of Mind, re- 
flecting Mind continually, and that 
they are ever at one with Mind. They 
shall never again experience the 
sense of lack ; neither shall any ma- 
terial manifestation be a source of 
trouble to them : for the Christ-con- 
sciousness, clothed with authority and 
power, will continually feed them 
with the knowledge of God, which is 
the true substance, and shall keep 
them within the Source of life : and 
because they realize God, good, they 
shall never more experience sorrow. 



Chapter VIII 
The Seventh Seal. A Vision of the Millennium 



And when he opened the 
seventh seal, there followed 
a silence in heaven about 
the space of half an hour. 



And the seventh portion of the rev- 
elation brought me a vision of the 
millennial period, during which there 
will be peace in the mental realm, 
for a period represented by the lat- 
ter portion of the duration of the 
matter-and-time belief* 



* See Note 3 of Introduction. 



(Continued on Page 237.) 



164 NOTES BY THE READER 



NOTES BY THE READER 165 



166 NOTES BY THE READER 



SECTION III 
THE SEVEN TRUMPETS 

(Chapter 8:2-11:18) 

Under the vision of the seals, in the last Act, we saw the 
militant Christ ushered upon the field of conflict in human 
consciousness, meeting there various satanic influences, and 
finally conquering, as implied in the imagery of the seventh 
seal. Thus, in one sense, the action of the drama is represented 
as completed in the vision of the seals ; but, as a matter of fact, 
that vision presents only one phase or aspect of the conflict car- 
ried to completion. Under the vision of the trumpets, we shall 
see the seven chief activities of the Christ-mind, symbolized as 
seven angels with trumpets, sounding the proclamations of 
God, which are destructive of evil. These angels are the same 
seven in whose behalf St. John was commanded to address 
instructive letters to the human consciousness, symbolized as 
"seven churches of Asia'', as we have already seen. 

Error in most of its phases has two aspects. At the com- 
mencement of its activity in any line, it is usually pleasant to 
look upon, and seems pleasant to experience; but, sooner or 
later, its dissentious and destructive aspect appears, when it 
is sure to bring great suffering upon those who have been lured 
into its meshes, finally driving them out of it into truth, and 
error goes to its own destruction, for lack of witness, when it 
can no longer find anyone to serve it. In chapters eight and 
nine, John gives us a prophecy of the punishment which he 
foresees will be meted out by error to the ungodly who are 
under its sway, — punishment along certain definite lines, to a 
fearful, and yet to a limited, extent, "a third part". In the 
15th and 16th chapters, he gives us a prophecy of the full 
measure of punishment or destruction being meted out along 

167 



168 REVELATION INTERPRETED 

i 
exactly the same lines as under the trumpets, and of the final 
overthrow of error. For this reason, it is extremely useful and 
enlightening to study the 8th and 9th chapters in connection 
with the 15th and 16th, as will here be done. 

The activities spoken of under the seals operate against the 
progress of Christianity and of those who are trying to be true 
Christians. The activities mentioned and described under the 
first six trumpets (chapters 8 and 9) and under the vials (chap- 
ters 15 and 16) operate against evil and evildoers, by forcing 
evil to continually punish itself and the ungodly who are 
enmeshed in it. 

We are not to , understand that the punishment of the 
ungodly commences after the activities which oppose Chris- 
tianity have spent their force, but that the ungodly are being 
punished coincidently with the opposition to the godly, all the 
time from the ascension of Jesus until the Millennium. In 
other words, the movements forecast under the trumpets are 
going on at the same time as the movements forecast under 
the first six seals. 



VIII : 2-6 



SECTION III 



169 



Parallel Visions of 

CHAPTER VIII 

2 And I saw the seven an- 
gels which stood before God; 
and to them were given sev- 
en trumpets. 

Pentecostal Service 

3 And another angel came 
and stood at the altar, hav- 
ing a golden censer; and 
there was given unto him 
much incense, that he should 
offer it with the prayers of 
all saints upon the golden 
altar which zvas before the 
throne. 

4 And the smoke of the in- 
cense, which came with the 
prayers of the saints, as- 
cended up before .God out of 
the angel's hand. 

5 And the angel took the 
censer, and filled it with fire 
of the altar, and cast it into 
the earth: and there were 
voices, and thunderings, and 
lightnings, and an earth- 
quake. 

6 And the seven .angels 
which had the seven trum- 
pets prepared themselves to 
sound. 



the Trumpets and Bowls 

CHAPTER XV 

i And I saw another sign in heaven, 
great and marvellous, seven angels 
having the seven last plagues; for 
in them is filled up the wrath of 
God. 

Pentecostal Service 

2 And I saw it as it were a sea oj 
glass mingled zvith fire; and them 
that had gotten the victory over the 
beast, and over his image, and over 
his mark, and over the number of 
his name, stand on the sea of glass, 
having the harps of God. (See 
20:4.) 

3 And they sing the song of Moses 
the servant of God, and the song of 
the Lamb, saying, Great and mar- 
vellous are thy works, Lord God 
Almighty, just and true are thy 

4 ways, thou king of saints, Who 
shall not fear thee, Lord, and 
glorify thy name? For thou only 
art holy: for all nations shall come 
and worship before thee, for thy 
judgments are made manifest. 

5 And after that I looked, and be- 
hold the temple of the tabernacle 
of the testimony in heaven was 
opened. 

6 And the seven angels came out 
of the temple, having the. seven 
plagues, clothed in pure and white 
linen, and having their breasts gir- 
ded zvith golden girdles. 

7 And one of the four beasts gave 
unto the seven angels seven golden 
vials full of the wrath of God, who 
liveth for ever and ever. 

8 And the temple was filled with 
smoke from the glory of God, and 
from his power; and no man zvas 
able to enter into the temple, till 
the seven plagues of the seven 
angels were fulfilled. 



170 REVELATION INTERPRETED VIII : 2-6 

After Christ Jesus ascended into heaven, his disciples 
became Apostles, and took up and carried forward in the 
world the ministry which he had commenced. They began that 
ministry with a great prayer and praise meeting, called "the 
day of Pentecost", at which time they received the Holy Spirit. 
This succession of events is now dramatized in form, though 
not in actual sequence, by representing all the disciples of 
Christ as Apostles, under the symbolism of seven (all) angels, 
proclaiming and enforcing the message of God and His Christ 
in the world. The combined spiritual factors in the mentalities 
of all human beings following and serving the Christ would 
include and represent the activity and enforcement of the seven 
chief phases of the Christ-mind, symbolized by the seven 
angels mentioned above, — namely, Spiritual Aspiration, Spir- 
itual Reason, Executive Mind, Direct Cognition, Divine Love, 
Perception of Reality, and Perception of Substance. 

The Pentecostal service at which these impersonal Apostles, 
the angels of the trumpets, receive the energizing of the Holy 
Spirit is depicted in verses 3-5. Verses 3 and 4 represent the 
spiritual factor in human consciousness in its activity as the 
true church, worshiping God, under the leadership of the Holy 
Spirit. Verse 5 represents this same factor in human con- 
sciousness under the leadership of the Holy Spirit, or as itself 
the Holy Spirit, assuming a militant attitude toward the world. 
The "fire of the altar' surely stands for the inspiration of 
Truth, acting as a purifying agent. "Voices and thunderings 
and lightnings" also represent the militant activity of the spir- 
itual consciousness. Both this expression and "fire of the 
altar" symbolize the activity of the Holy Spirit. The "voices" 
• indicate clear, intelligent utterance; the "thunderings" indicate 
the power and majesty of the utterance; and the "lightnings" 
indicate the swiftness and far-reaching effect of the utterance. 
When the activity of the Holy Spirit is "cast into the 
earth", that is, into false material sense, it produces a violent 
mental upheaval,* often manifest in physical disturbances 

* "Science and Health," 97:23-25; 401:16-19; 540:5-16. 



(XV: 1-4) SECTION III 171 

among men and in the natural world. Whenever a marked 
impartation of spiritual truth comes to the human conscious- 
ness, it always produces such an upheaval, and often results in 
wars and the overturning of governments and other human 
institutions. 

CHAPTER XV 

(Considered out of consecutive order) 

Verse I, Chapter 15. "The seven last plagues" is not a 
fortunate rendering of the original Greek. The word plcgc 
would be much better rendered "blow" or "stroke", as it prac- 
tically always is in classical Greek. The idea clearly is that 
the angels of the vials are to give the finishing strokes to error. 
The activity of good does destroy error, but, as indicated 
before, when strictly speaking, it does not "plague" or "curse" 
error, though it may force error to plague or curse itself. If 
this does not seem at this point entirely clear, the reader is 
referred again to Notes 4, 5 and 6 of the Introduction. In 
connection with the activities of these angels, we would speak 
more scientifically in expressing what will happen, were we to 
say, that evil will continue to advance against truth and good 
along the seven specified lines, and will be met in its advance 
by corresponding phases of the truth of good standing as walls 
of adamant, which will turn evil back upon itself, to the ter- 
rible punishment of those enmeshed therein, and to the final 
destruction of all evil. The seven phases of truth, which, with- 
out moving out of their mental places (omnipresence), oppose 
and turn back to destruction the seven phases of evil, are very 
properly spoken of as seven angels of God. They represent 
the full measure of God's redemptive power, and so it is said, 
"In them is filled up the wrath (ardor, zeal) of God"; that is, 
the power of good to destroy evil. 

Verses 2-4 represent, not exactly a Pentecostal meeting in 
preparation for the conflict, as in the corresponding passage 
under the trumpets, but a praise meeting, with rejoicing that 
the conflict is near its end. 



172 REVELATION INTERPRETED (XV : 5) 

The "sea of glass mingled with fire" is the same sea of glass 
as is spoken of in chapter 4, verses 5 and 6. See Notes on 
those verses in the discussion of Section II. The symbol of fire 
added to the symbol of the glassy sea simply emphasizes the 
militant" and purifying activity of the spiritual consciousness, 
the Holy Spirit. The glassy sea alone represents it as in a 
state of peace and rest. The following comment from The 
Self -Inter pre ting Bible is also interesting and illuminating: 

This sea of glass, — rather crystalline, is a figure drawn, 
not from a geographical sea, but from a large vessel in the 
temple called a sea ( 1 Kings 7 123-39) used by the priests for 
washing, 2 Chron. 4:6. This sea in the temple was of brass, 
emblematic of strength — the prophetic sea of crystal is 
emblematic of purity, it is mingled with fire, as an emblem 
of purifying judgments. Under the providence of a wise and 
merciful God, the hour that has most troubled has always most 
purified his church. Persecution cleanseth the church of hypo- 
crites and luke-warm professors, excites the spirit of prayer, 
exercises patience, separates from the world, and produces 
Christ" (Phil. 1:23). 

In this second verse, those who have gotten the victory 
over worldly government, the rule of human desire and will, 
and have submitted only to God's government, perhaps suffer- 
ing martyrdom in the process, are represented as standing by 
(not "on" when properly translated) the sea of glass, having 
the harps of God, and singing the song of Moses and the 
Lamb. Really, these are mentalities not localized, but per- 
vaded by, or themselves constituting, the glassy sea, the spir- 
itual consciousness. These are they who have profited by the 
warning given in chapter 14, verses 9-13, — standing against 
the beast (human misgovernment), even to the death if need 
be, and receiving their reward as indicated in verse 13. 

Verse 5. "The temple of the tabernacle of the testimony 
in heaven" is one of the numerous symbols of the Holy Spirit. 
The imagery is here drawn from Numbers 1 :5<D. "But thou 
shalt appoint the Levites over the tabernacle of testimony, and 



(XV: 6) SECTION III 173 

over all the vessels thereof, and over all things that belong to 
it." It here symbolizes the mental sphere in which events and 
movements are hidden from the knowledge of humanity, until 
humanity has made sufficient progress to "open", or attain to, 
this sphere. In verse 8 we read: "The temple was filled with 
smoke from the glory of God, and from his power". This 
expression symbolizes the fact that consciousness which is 
highly spiritual is blinding to human sense, until human sense 
itself has become spiritualized. The last clause of the verse 
informs us that no human being will be able to fully enter into 
this temple, the Holy Spirit, till the Christ-angels have deliv- 
ered their seven last blows destructive of evil, thus purifying 
and spiritualizing the consciousness of every man. 

Verse 6. "And the seven angels came out of the temple." 
Really, the angels of Truth are omnipresent and immovable, 
and make no advance. The advance is on the part of men, 
finally attaining to a point where they can discern these angels, 
become at one with them, and have part in enforcing their 
power to turn back the various phases of evil to its. own tor- 
ment, finally destroying it completely. These angels are rep- 
resented in this verse as being dressed as high priests, minister- 
ing in God's service. 



174 NOTES BY THE READER 



VIII : 7 SECTION III 175 



Chapter IX 

The Trumpets Sound and the Bowls Are Poured Out 

The First Trumpet and the First Vial 

CHAPTER VIII CHAPTER XVI 

7 The first angel sounded, 2 And the first went and poured 
and there followed hail and out his vial (bowl) upon the earth, 

fire mingled with blood, and and there fell a noisome and 

they zvere cast upon the • ^ , • , 

earth;* and the third part grievous sore upon the men which 

of trees was burnt up, and had tne mark of the beast > and U P~ 

all green grass was burnt up. on them which worship his image. 

We have now reached a point where, in order to proceed 
with clarity of vision, we must make a more definite statement 
of the significance of symbolismf and of its use in the Apoca- 
lypse than we have hitherto done, and this is well expressed 
in the words of Professor Moulton in the Modern Reader's 
Bible. He says : 

"A modern reader, accustomed to such poetry as Dante's 
Paradiso, must always remember in approaching such a work 
as this (the Revelation) that Hebrew literature rests upon the 
symbol rather than the image. . . . Both imagery and 
symbolism rest upon comparison : some external idea is 
imported to be compared with a detail in the positive descrip- 
tion. But imagery appeals to the imagination, and uses ideas 
which make pictures ; symbolism does not appeal to the pic- 
torial sense at all, but rather to some analytic faculty, or con- 
ventional association of ideas. . . . Dante's imaginative 
forms may be symbolic, but they will never cease to have the 
characteristic of imagery that they can fit into pictures. 
Hebrew symbolism is again and again incompatible with the 
pictorial : it is enough to instance the leading symbol of this 
vision — the Lamb, which, in the various presentations, could 
enter into no pictorial imagination. 

* All modern translations insert after the semicolon : "and the third (part) 
of the earth was burnt up." Some translations omit the word "part." 

t On page 146 of "Life Understood," its author, Mr. Rawson, sug- 
gests that the Biblical use of symbols to teach spiritual things is because 
of the fact that symbols, if rightly understood, do not suggest pictures 
or outlines. He says : "To form any picture of the material or at- 
tempted outline of the spiritual, even in one's clearest realizations, is 
wrong. Hence the symbolic teaching of things spiritual." 



176 REVELATION INTERPRETED VIII: 7 

"The most important thing in connection with the sym- 
bolism of St. John is a point of literary effect, which further 
seems in the poem itself to be indicated as extending beyond 
poetic form into the underlying spiritual interpretation. This 
is that the symbolism of Revelation is the symbolism of Old 
Testament prophecy revived ; the symbolic ideas being not 
merely revived, but at the same time varied, massed together, 
and intensified. Indeed, very few, if any, of St. John's sym- 
bols are drawn from any other source. Considered from the 
literary side this is the device of 'echoing', which distinguishes 
all 'classical' poetry, — the special line of poetic succession in 
which each poet makes new creations out of detailed remin- 
iscences of the poetry of the past. But in the present case this 
is much more than a literary device. The testimony of Jesus is 
the spirit of prophecy: one of the leading thoughts of St. 
John's work is that the mysteries of the old dispensation find 
their solution and fulfillment in the new: similarly, the forms 
of ancient prophecy combine to make the symbolic setting of 
the supreme revelation." 

Verse 7, of chapter 8, quoted above, is an "echo" from 
Exodus 9 122-25 : 

"And the Lord said unto Moses, Stretch forth thine hand toward 
heaven, that there may be hail in all the land of Egypt, upon man, and 
upon beast, and upon every herb of the field, throughout the land of 
Egypt. And Moses stretched forth his rod toward heaven: and the 
Lord sent thunder and hail, and the fire ran along the ground; and the 
Lord rained hail upon the land of Egypt. So there was hail, and fire 
mingled with the hail, very grievous, such as there zvas none like it in 
all the land of Egypt since it became a nation. And the hail smote 
throughout all the land of Egypt all that zvas in the field, both man and 
beast; and the hail smote every herb of the field, and break every tree 
of the field." 

Let us now place in parallel arrangement the' verse which 
we are to interpret and some selected phrases from the above : 

From Revelation From Exodus 

The first angel sounded, So there zvas hail,' and fire mingled 

and there followed hail and ... ,, , .. . , .» r„ 

fire mingled with blood, and zv,th the had ' ■ ■ and the fire 

they were cast upon the ran along the ground; and the hail 

earth; and the third part of „,„„ + „ „ „„,„, j „„,*, „x **.„ r„7J „„„j 

' 1 j. u J 11 smote every herb of the held, and 

trees zvas burnt up, and all J J J 

green grass zvas burnt up. break every tree of the field. 



VIII : 7 SECTION III 177 

Either the long quotation from Exodus, or the short one, 
could form the basis of a literary "image", since both suggest 
the picture of a violent tornado, and of nothing but that. The 
same would be true of our verse from Revelation, were it not 
for the insertion of the words "with blood". It is perfectly 
easy to picture a mingling of fire (lightning) and hail, as we 
often see them in a hail storm ; but there is nothing correspond- 
ing to the mingling of these with blood in the sky. It is true 
that a hail storm often produces bloody results ; but it will be 
noticed that our verse represents the blood as mingled with 
the fire and hail before any of them "were cast upon the 
earth" ; so, in this case, the "blood" is a part of the cause of 
the devastation, rather than indicating a result. We can only 
reach a correct understanding of this verse by giving up all 
attempt to base our interpretation upon what may be sug- 
gested to thought by an image or picture, and, on the other 
hand, by understanding that we have to deal with sym- 
bolism, rather than an image, and so must get at the 
meaning through analysis rather than through the use of 
imagination. 

Let it here be stated, as a fact to which we may need to 
refer frequently as we proceed in the interpretation of the 
Book, that the parts or elements of an image have a consistent 
or reasonable relation to each other, whereas, the parts or 
elements of a symbol, if it is at all complex, usually have no 
reasonable or imaginable relation to each other, if taken liter- 
ally : the relation between them is only to be found when, 
through analysis, we get back of the parts or elements of the 
symbol to the meaning of what is symbolized; in which mean- 
ing, if our interpretation be correct, there is always perfect 
unity or reasonableness of relation. 

To establish perfect reasonableness of relation in the activ- 
ities symbolized by the verse now under consideration, with- 
out violating a correct understanding of the nature and true 
activity of God and of all His angels or ideas, we shall have 
to make a somewhat careful analysis of what is implied by the 



178 REVELATION INTERPRETED VIII : 7 

symbol of the tornado (fire and hail) as well as what is sug- 
gested by the symbol of the "blood". 

If men are out of doors in a violent hail storm, they are 
likely to get "hurt", so that their suffering may continue for 
a considerable period. It will help us to understand, not only 
the verse under consideration, but many another passage of 
Scripture, and many an experience of human life, if we con- 
sider carefully just the combination of forces and their joint 
activities, which bring about a hail storm, and which cause 
suffering to men who are exposed to the storm. 

The agencies which render possible a hail storm are the 
sun, and the earth, — the latter including the elements of air, 
ground, and water. It is evident that, without the shining of 
the sun, there would never be a hail storm, as, in that case, 
there could be no evaporation of water ; it is also evident 
that without the elements of earth upon which to act, the shin- 
ing of the sun alone would never result in a storm. The light 
and heat of the sun are constant and practically invariable, and 
cannot be conceived of as a source of a hail storm, though in 
the conditions of earth they are an indispensable occasion of 
such a storm. In fact, it is only when a given portion of the 
earth's surface is brought into such relation to the unchanging 
activity of the sun that the sun shines with considerable direct- 
ness upon it, thus increasing the earth's reception of the sun's 
activity, that hail storms are ever produced. In many regions, 
the more the earth's surface is exposed to the action of the sun, 
the more likelihood there is of a hail storm, — a paradox so 
great, that had we not had actual experience to the contrary, 
we should say that it were impossible that an increase of heat 
should result in the increased production of ice, — in the form 
of hail, or in any other form. 

In a hail storm, there are three activities that seem terrify- 
ing and destructive, — the lightning, the wind, and the hail. 
The lightning doubtless represents transformed energy from 
the sun, while the wind and the hail more distinctively rep- 
resent the material or earth element in the total manifestation 



VIII : 7 SECTION III 179 

of the storm. Except in rare instances, which we do not need 
to quibble about when we are considering the basis of an 
illustration, the lightning does not bring physical suffering 
upon a man exposed to the storm. If it strikes him at all it 
does not cause him to suffer (except in rare instances), but 
gives him an instantaneous and (so far as we know) painless 
passage into the next stage of experience. So the sun-factor 
in the storm does not cause the man suffering: it is the earth- 
factors, the hail and the wind, that cause him to suffer. 

God, the divine Mind, who is unadulterated harmony and 
good, who ceaselessly, changelessly, and infinitely radiates love, 
joy, and peace into the whole realm of conscious experience, 
cannot possibly be a source of suffering, or of punishment, or 
of anything that occasions discomfort, to a human being, or to 
anything or anybody whatever : and yet, as the sun is the 
occasion (though never the source) of storms upon the earth, 
so the activity of divine Mind is the occasion of disturbances 
in the human realm which bring great sufferings upon human 
beings exposed to them.* This happens, and can happen, only 
because, in the realm of human experience, divine Mind is 
brought into relation with elements of false, earthly belief, 
which seem to obstruct the activities of Mind, even as the 
elements of earth obstruct the course of the sun's rays of light 
and heat, — the obstruction, in both cases, being the contrib- 
uting cause of "storms" or disturbances, which are painful and 
seemingly destructive to human beings. 

The annual movement of the earth around the sun, com- 
bined with its diurnal revolution on its axis, and the inclina- 
tion of its axis to the plane of its orbit in its path around the 
sun, — these three factors result at times in exposing a given 
region of the earth's surface more directly to the action of the 
sun (though the sun's action is not in the least modified in the 
process), resulting in an increase of storms, as already pointed 
out. Likewise, as mankind, or some considerable portion of it, 



"Science and Health," 386:25; 540:11-15. 



180 REVELATION INTERPRETED VIII: 7 

learns more of God, and more insistently and consciously 
declares and enforces His law in the world, mortal mind or 
material sense ("the earth") is thereby more directly exposed 
to the activity of divine Mind and its ideas (angels) ; and this 
results in "storms", upheavals in human experience which 
prove exceedingly painful to human beings who are exposed 
to them. Just as it seems paradoxical, and almost impossible 
of belief, that an increase of heat on the earth could result in 
an increased production of ice or hail, so it would seem, with- 
out careful analysis, impossible that an increased activity of 
divine Mind, good, in the human realm could result in an 
increased manifestation of suffering and apparent destruction ; 
yet this is what occurs.* However, as the physical suffering 
of those exposed to a hail storm results from the earth-factor, 
rather than from the sun-factor, in the storm, so, likewise, when 
a strict analysis is made, it is seen that the suffering of human 
beings in all human experiences which occasion suffering 
results from the mortal, false, or earthy elements in human 
consciousness, and never from the activity of the divine factor. 
As pointed out in the closing paragraph of Note 4 of the Intro- 
duction, and as illustrated in the analysis of the activities of 
the storm which we have just been making, if divine Mind 
exercises any destructive effect upon anything human, this 
occurs only at the final stage, when Mind, as Spirit, completely 
overcomes the manifestation of matter, thus destroying the 
human sense of body, whereupon the so-called human is com- 
pletely exchanged for the divine ; but this final destructive 
process, so far as the divine factor is concerned, is painless, 
and ushers the human being, without suffering, into the unal- 
loyed and everlasting realization of good.f In anything short 
of this final destruction of the body, the divine factor in human 
experience always blesses and comforts and improves, rather 



* "Every sensuous pleasure or pain is self -destroyed through suffer- 
ing" ("Science and Health," 224:7, 8). 
f "Science and Health," 325 :2-5. 



VIII: 7 SECTION III 181 

than injures, even the corporeal man.* Humanity gets its 
pain and its punishment from the activity of the earth-ele- 
ments, the false beliefs, which seem to resist the activities 
of God. 

To an unanalytical sense, a hail storm seems like a unified 
manifestation, although, in fact, as we have seen, widely 
divergent factors are operative in the storm. So, to unana- 
lytical sense, the "storms" which arise in human experience 
seem to be unified manifestations, and, consequently, unana- 
lytical sense is likely to attribute them either wholly to God, 
or wholly to evil (the devil), whereas, the fact is that they 
are attributable to the action and reaction upon the human 
sense plane of the impersonal forces of good and evil. A hail 
storm, through the action of the divergent forces involved in it, 
purifies the air. Likewise "storms" in human experience 
purify human consciousness ; and, paradoxical as it may seem, 
while wholly opposed to each other, and never coordinated or 
combined, the forces of good and of evil, when acting coinci- 
dently, may be said to cooperate to this end. The element of 
suffering inherent in evil tends to push men out of evil ; and the 
attractiveness of good tends to "pull" them toward God and 
eternal life. Up to the final limit, when evil is wholly 
destroyed, the increased enforcement of the law of God in 
the realm of human consciousness often results in stirring up 
evil to increased opposition^ thus bringing out the suffering 
element more prominently. It often happens that the human 
consciousness is being purified most rapidly when it suffers 
most, that it is being brought most rapidly to the final goal 
where all suffering shall cease at the very time when, as it 
seems, it is getting farther and farther from that goal. 

This line of reasoning, the correctness of which is beyond 
legitimate dispute, makes it clear that the present (A. D. 1915) 
conflict in Europe, terrible as it seems, represents a process 

* "Science and Health," 453:18, 19. 

f "Science and Health," 534:24-30; 565:1-4; 569:21-27. 



182 REVELATION INTERPRETED VIII: 7 

of the purification of human sense. If so, it indicates, not 
retrogression of the race, but progress, though, in itself, it is 
not progress. Certain human experiences may be an indica- 
tion of the working of good, though these experiences, of them- 
selves, are not good. Shortly after this war is over, humanity 
will, doubtless, be found to be occupying higher moral and 
spiritual levels. 

What is termed "weather" results from the joint-action of 
the sun and the earth-elements. This joint-action results in 
alternating periods of fair weather and storm, and interme- 
diate conditions. A succession of bright, clear days brings to 
pass the very conditions which result in a storm. Such days 
are often spoken of by seamen as "weather-breeders". On the 
other hand, stormy days bring to pass the very conditions 
which make for clear weather later. This illustration must 
not be pressed too far ; but it legitimately suggests that, up to 
a certain stage of the spiritual development of a person or of 
a people, the action and reaction of impersonal good and imper- 
sonal evil in the field of their consciousness is likely to result 
for them in alternating periods of harmony and discord. So 
long as their health and prosperity are of the natural order, 
and have not been established upon the basis of Principle by 
the conscious recognition and enforcement of the law of God, 
the very periods when their affairs seem most harmonious are 
likely to beget conditions which will lead to discord, while, 
many times, their periods of discord are teaching them lessons 
and bringing to pass other conditions which will later lead to 
the establishment of harmony. More or less of these alter- 
nating experiences are likely to occur, even after persons or a 
people have definitely and with full purpose begun to work 
their way from a natural to a spiritual basis of living.* It is 

* This accounts for alternating periods of peace and war in advancing 
human experience ; but when humanity has sufficiently advanced, "they 
shall beat their swords into plow-shares, and their spears into pruning 
hooks: nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they 
learn zvar any more." — Isa. 2 14. 



VIII : 7 SECTION HI 183 

true, even after considerable spiritual progress has been made, 
that periods of suffering are periods of purification, as above 
suggested. Fortunate it is, however, that it is a tendency of 
the mental sunshine to alternate with the mental storm ; for if 
the purifying process were too strenuous and persistent, it 
might become relatively destructive rather than beneficial. 
After a time, it ought to be possible to demonstrate painless 
progress, and this should be the ideal. It is not the intention 
of the author to suggest that we should look for "storms" in 
human experience, or hold that there cannot be progress with- 
out them ; but the purpose is, rather, to show what they may 
mean, if they do occur, and to make it evident that they need 
not be regarded wholly in the way in which it is natural to 
regard them, for they may be blessings in disguise, though not 
the highest blessings. There must come a stage of spiritual 
development for every person and people after which periods 
of discord will no more occur. They are certain to be elim- 
inated after mortal, material sense has been largely banished 
from consciousness. 

To revert again to the passages which we are interpreting, 
it has been made evident that the "sounding" of the angel in 
verse 7 represents the activity of divine Mind. To be per- 
fectly clear in thought, we must remember always that divine 
Mind and its ideas are not more active at some times than at 
others ; so, that, speaking in the absolute, it could not be said 
that the angel "commenced" to sound, in any sense in which 
it had not been always sounding. But advancing human con- 
sciousness comes mentally nearer to divine Mind and its ideas, 
and so comes into the experience of the "sounding" of the 
angels, as it had not before. This nearer approach of the 
human consciousness to the changeless activity of this "angel", 
the Christ-mind as Spiritual Perception or Soul, results in a 
mental upheaval which is symbolized in part by a violent tor- 
nado with hail. As remarked before, this figure of the fire 
(lightning) and hail might stand as an image, rather than a 
symbol, were it not for the fact that "blood" is added to the 



184 REVELATION INTERPRETED VIII: 7 

combination of elements before they are "cast upon the earth" . 
A combination of hail, lightning, and blood in the sky is unpic- 
turable, and so must be taken as symbolism rather than as 
imagery. The ''fire" fittingly symbolizes the purifying 
influence of the Holy Spirit : the "blood" may be understood 
as connoting "the blood of Jesus Christ, which cleanseth from 
all sin", — in other words, the sanctifying influence of the 
Christ-life : while the "hail" symbolizes the mortal element, the 
purifying influence of punishment, or suffering for ignorance 
and wrong-doing. Although the three elements in this symbol 
are unpicturable if taken literally in a united sense, neverthe- 
less the united activity of the elements which they' symbolize, — 
the activities of the Holy Spirit, of the Christ-life, and of the 
punitive aspect of error, — is perfectly consistent and thinkable. 
This brings out clearly the point made by Professor Moulton, 
that the interpretation of symbolism depends, not on the use of 
imagination, as does the interpretation of imagery, but on the 
use of the analytical faculties. 

The latter portion of the verse which we are interpreting 
presents a true image, and its meaning is best made evident by 
considering it in that way. The set of mental influences set in 
action by the sounding of the angel are represented as "cast 
upon the earth", that is, into material sense, just as a hail storm 
sweeps down from the sky upon the literal earth, with strokes 
of lightning, wind, and hail. In a violent tornado, when the 
lightning repeatedly strikes the earth, it manifests the appear- 
ance described in Exodus, — "the fire ran along the ground". 
After the storm has passed, the earth's surface appears devas- 
tated. As a matter of fact, about "a third" of the trees thereon 
are destroyed, "burnt up", — either having been struck by light- 
ning, or uprooted by the wind, and all the green herbage is 
withered and looks as if fire had passed over it. The Greek 
chortos chloros is better translated "green herbage", as by 
Rotherham, rather than "green grass" , as by the Authorized 
Version. The words "and a third of the earth was burned 
up", added to the modern translations, symbolize the fact that 



VIII : 7 SECTION III 185 

a third part or considerable portion of the activity of mate- 
riality and sensuality in human consciousness is destroyed by 
the initial activities of this angel.* 

If we are to attempt a specific interpretation of "trees" 
and "green herbage", we may well be guided by the fact that, 
in the literal sense, these are products of the earth, and repre- 
sent specialized and attractive but more or less transitory mani- 
festations of matter, — the trees being much more enduring 
manifestations than the herbage. The "green herbage" may 
very properly be taken to symbolize the ordinary details of 
so-called "happy life" in unspiritualized human experience, — 
the transitory flood of careless, "happy", or not unattractive 
thoughts that come and go in unspiritualized consciousness 
without particular aim or purpose, all of a materialistic order. 
The "trees" probably symbolize well established human doc- 
trines, customs and habits of thought of a sensual and mate- 
rialistic nature, — more fixed and continuous in consciousness 
than the kind of thoughts symbolized by "the green herbage". 
Such customs and habits of thought are often highly prized 
and respected among men, and yet they may be the very strong- 
holds of error. 

To sum up the interpretation of this seventh verse of the 
eighth chapter, we may say that it gives us to understand that 
the activity of this first angel of the Christ-mind will make 
material sense, and sensuality, and their detailed activities in 
the field of human consciousness, look as if a hail-storm had 
passed over them ; that is, something like a third of their estab- 
lished habits and customs of thought will be destroyed, and 
the ordinary course of consciousness which they seek to per- 
petuate will be completely upset and devastated. After a storm 



*Mr. F. L. Rawson suggests that in an historical interpretation of 
the Apocalypse, "the reference of 'the third part' is to the three portions 
into which the Roman empire was split at the time of Constantine, one 
part having been virtually devastated ('burnt up'). The historical ac- 
count of the attack on Rome shows that they actually burnt the herbage 
and trees." 



186 REVELATION INTERPRETED (XVI: 2) 

has passed, the herbage and the trees grow up again, the 
former more quickly than the latter. There is, therefore, noth- 
ing in this symbolism to indicate that, at the period of the 
activity of the angel which is now being spoken of, the daily 
course of mortal consciousness, though devastated by the 
storm, will not be in evidence again. Rather, the implication 
is that materiality and sensuality will continue their activity 
in human consciousness, but will be repeatedly devastated by 
the activity of the angel, and thus be gradually destroyed in a 
more lasting sense, — much as repeated hail-storms might in 
time render a given region of the earth's surface, though nat- 
urally fertile, uninhabitable to men. Under the symbolism of 
the angel with the first "vial" , we shall have this same angel 
represented as finishing the work of the destruction of mate- 
riality and sensuality, which is only "a third part" accomplished 
when the angel first appears sounding his "trumpet" . 

CHAPTER XVI 

Rotherham translates verse 2 of chapter 16 as follows : 

And the first departed and poured out his bozvl unto the earth; and 
there came to be a baneful and painful ulcer upon the men zvho had 
the mark of the beast and them who were doing homage unto his image. 

The Greek phiale, transliterated into English as "phial", 
and translated "vial" in the Authorized Version, and "bowl" 
in most modern translations, really means a libation saucer, — 
a broad, shallow vessel, used at the altar in religious services, 
where libations of wine are poured out. 

The same angel, the same activity of the Christ-mind, 
which is represented in chapter 8 as sounding the first trumpet, 
thereby commencing the destruction of material sense in its 
lowest phases, is here represented as engaging in the activity 
which will help to finish the task. 

Passing by the figurative form of expression, the angel is 
represented as enforcing against sensuality and materialism 
the full measure of the ardor of God. Strictly speaking, we 



(XVI: 2) SECTION HI 187 

should not think of this angel as engaging in any special 
activity at this time, or at any other particular time. He 
"pours out" his "phiale" of the ardor of God only in the sense 
that the sun always "pours out" light and heat, — uniformly 
from year to year and from century to century. But advanc- 
ing humanity comes into such relations to the Christ-mind that 
it receives this "pouring out" more directly and fully than 
formerly, — even to the cleansing of it from all error, the final 
process being very painful before it is finished. 

All men who are under the dominion of sensuality and 
materialism, are, during such experience, bound to be under 
the dominion of "the beast" and "the false prophet". These 
two symbols represent worldly government and the worldly 
church (false theology), as will be made fully evident in the 
Notes on chapter 13. It will also be made evident in the dis- 
cussion of that chapter that "the image of the beast", which 
men worship, is the anthropomorphic or man-like sense of 
God and the mortal sense of man, which the false prophet, 
the worldly church, causes men to set up for worship in their 
own thought. Hence, the activity of the angel against mate- 
riality and sensuality must also be activity against men who 
have "the mark of the beast, and . . . worship his image". 

The sensual and materialistic factors in human conscious- 
ness are represented as "ulcerating" under the joint-action of 
the angel and material sense, resulting in much suffering, and 
then going to destruction. 



188 NOTES BY THE READER 



VIII : 8, 9 SECTION III 189 

The Second Trumpet and the Second Vial 

CHAPTER VIII CHAPTER XVI 

8 And the second angel sounded, 3 And the second angel 

and as it were a great mountain . 

burning with fire was cast into the poured out his vial upon the 

sea: and the third part of the sea sea ; and it became as the 
became blood. 

9 And the third part of the crea- blood of a dead man: and* 

tures which were in the sea, and ^■ ■ 1 j- 1 • .1 

had life, died; and the third part every lmn * SOul died m the 

of the ships were destroyed. sea. 

The second angel may be regarded as identical with the 
one who is represented as dictating the second of the letters 
to the churches in Asia; that activity of the Christ-mind 
which may be described as Spiritual Reason, or Thinking- 
according-to-Principle. 

"The sea", considered in the various connections in which 
this symbol is used throughout the Apocalypse, would seem 
to symbolize the sensuous element in human nature, — a region 
of mental activity which is filled with discord. The fierceness 
of the activity of the angel against this form of error, and 
the resulting upheaval, are aptly symbolized by "a great 
mountain burning with fire cast into the sea". Taken in the 
literal sense, the boiling of the water, and the disappearance 
of much of the water in steam, and the killing of the living 
creatures in the sea, and the making of the water bloody, can 
readily be imagined, — whence the figurative sense is not diffi- 
cult to discern. As the result of the activity of the angel, a 
good commencement is made in destroying the sensuous 
activity in human consciousness. As indicated before, the 
activities of the Christ-mind only become operative on the 
human plane in proportion as men come to understand the 
Christ-mind and then enforce it. Men who do this may 
properly be regarded as carriers ("ships") of angelic ideas, 
whereas men in the service of satan may be regarded as "ships" 
of satan. The text declares that in the conflict between the 
angel and satanic sensuousness, a third part of the human 
agents will be destroyed, 



190 REVELATION INTERPRETED (XVI: 3) 

CHAPTER XVI 

Verse 3 of chapter 16 indicates the activity of this same 
angel finishing his work. As a result, "the sea" , sensuousness, 
becomes "as the blood of a dead man" , stagnant, lifeless, with- 
out activity: "And every living soul died in the sea"; that is, 
there is no more mental activity in the sensuous realm. That 
phase of mortal mind is destroyed. 



VIII : 10, 11 SECTION III 191 

The Third Trumpet and the Third Vial 

CHAPTER VIII CHAPTER XVI 

io And the third angel 4 And the third angel poured out 

sounded, and there fell a his vial upon the rivers and foun- 

great star from heaven, tains of waters; and they became 

burning as it were a lamp, blood. 

and it fell upon the third 5 And I heard the angel of the 

part of the rivers, and up- T vate / S s ^. T hou art righteous O 

±1 x ± • x j. -Lord, which art, wast, and shalt 

on the fountains of waters: ^ because thou ' hast jud d thus 

11 And the name of the star 6 For they haye shed the blood of 

is called Wormwood: and S ai n ts and prophets, and thou hast 

the third part of the waters given them blood to drink; for 

became wormwood; and they are worthy. 

j-~j „x 4/ 7 And I heard another out of the 

many men died of the ' 1, -r- t j r- j a 1 

y J altar say, Even so, Lord God Al- 

waters, because they were mighty, true and righteous are thy 

made bitter. judgments. 

The third angel is the same as was represented as dic- 
tating to John the letter to the church at Pergamos, Executive 
Mind, Will, Life. 

To interpret these verses intelligently, we must get a 
clear definition of what is meant by the word "life". In 
ordinary human experience, when consciousness has departed 
from a human body permanently, we say that the person is 
"dead" ; but as long as consciousness is present, we say that 
he is "alive". Hence, in common human speech, the life is 
the consciousness. The body of itself "profiteth nothing", 
and is fit only to be buried. The terms "life" and "conscious- 
ness" can be used interchangeably in every phase of practical 
or philosophical discussion. Whatever supports consciousness 
supports life. Whatever consciousness is, that life is. True 
consciousness is true life, and is "eternal life", since all that 
is true must be eternal. Since God is all truth in origin, and 
the Christ is all truth in expression, the consciousness of God 
and His Christ must be consciousness of truth, true conscious- 
ness, eternal consciousness, eternal life. "This is life eternal, 
that they might know thee the only true God and . . . 
Christ whom thou hast sent". False consciousness, conscious- 
ness of falsehood, is false life ; that is, no life at all. Counter- 



192 REVELATION INTERPRETED VIII : 10, 11 

feit money, though seeming to be money, is not money at all. 
"He that hath .the Son [the consciousness of the Christ] 
hath life; and he that hath not the Son of God hath not life" , 
because he has no consciousness of truth, no true conscious- 
ness, and therefore, really, no consciousness or life at all. 
That which appears is only seeming consciousness or life. 

For consciousness to continue, it must have something to 
be conscious of. God, manifest in His ideas, which in the 
total are the Christ, furnishes all true "food for thought". 
These ideas are manifestations of Truth and Love ; they rep- 
resent feeling as well as thought. The ideas of Truth and 
Love, considered as a stream flowing into human conscious- 
ness, are aptly symbolized as "a pure river of zuater of life" 
(Rev. 22 :i). Considered as the support of true consciousness, 
in the sense that water is a support of physical life, they are 
symbolized as "living fountains of waters" (Rev. 7:17). 

As true, spiritual consciousness or life must be supported 
by spiritual ideas and feelings, so even false, mortal conscious- 
ness is supported by ideas and feelings of its own order, — 
namely, ideas resting on a material basis, and feelings that are 
opposite to divine love in character. 

It will be generally admitted that hatred, malice, envy, 
jealousy and revenge are opposite to divine love. Unmodified 
human love is equally opposite, though this is not so evident 
to the majority of people; but it may be made more evident 
by a bit of consideration. Divine love is impersonal ("no 
respecter of persons"), and never changes character, cannot 
be offended, is entirely unselfish. For a full description of it, 
consult the 13th chapter of First Corinthians. Unmodified 
human love is always attached to persons, turns to hatred 
when severely crossed, is often easily offended, and is always 
more or less selfish. When human love grieves over the 
misfortune or loss of another, it grieves even more for the 
effect upon itself than upon the other. The highest type of 
human love is conceded to be the mother love ; yet, a mother, 
grieving for the death of a child, usually thinks more about 



VIII: 10, 11 SECTION III 193 

how she is going to get along without the child than she does 
about the fate of the child. If she is a believer in immortality, 
she will usually concede that the child is in God's care, and 
that she does not need to be concerned for its welfare ; so 
her love, changed to grief, is, after all, distinctly self-consid- 
erate. If the child is seriously ill, the mother's love will beget 
fear, and thus become, perchance, the chief obstacle to the 
child's recovery, while divine love will heal the child. In 
relations between the sexes, human love unmodified by spiritual 
training gravitates uniformly into sensuality and an endless 
chain of evil consequences ; divine love is absolutely removed 
from the possibility of such an issue. 

As we have seen above, spiritual ideas and spiritual love 
are symbolized by ''rivers and fountains of waters". As is 
the case with most of the symbols in the Apocalypse, this sym- 
bol is also used in a reversed, lower sense, as it is in the 
verses now under consideration, where it stands for human 
hatred in its various phases, and unmodified human love. 

Among all races of men, human felings are associated with 
the cardiac region, where they often seem to be located ; and 
the heart is the "fountain" of the "rivers", or streams, of 
the body, — the arterial system. This fact may have suggested 
to St. John the use of the phrase (C rivers and fountains of 
waters' 3 as a symbol for human emotion. 

Like everything human, uncontrolled by the divine, human 
feelings present in experience a mixture of seeming good and 
of evil. Except in so far as their action is modified and 
controlled by divine Mind, even their seeming good is really 
evil. Hence, when the realm of human emotion is brought 
more directly under the influence of the Christ-mind, — a state 
of affairs typified by the sounding of the third angel, — the 
evil character of mortal love, as well as of mortal hatred, is 
made more evident and this whole activity of the carnal mind 
is made to show more plainly its fundamentally discordant 
nature. To human sense, human love seems like the highest 
good, — like a " great star in heaven", and it seems to burn 



194 REVELATION INTERPRETED (XVI: 4-7) 

with a great light, — though St. John suggests by his symbol 
that its light is not true, being that of "a lamp" , or "a torch" , 
rather than that of the sun. But when the activity of the 
angel is felt, human emotion loses its apparently "sweet" 
character, and becomes "bitter", like "wormwood" , and in 
human experience falls out of the apparently high place 
which it had occupied in the mental realm. 

"There fell a great star from heaven, burning as it were a 
lamp, and it fell upon the third part of the rivers, and upon 
the fountains of waters". As will be seen from the preceding 
explanation, human emotion is here represented under two 
symbols, — first, under that of a star in heaven, that which 
appears to be a source of light in human experience, and 
second, under that of rivers and fountains of waters. The 
whole expression serves to signify that the activity of the 
angel, — the manifestation of Executive Mind, Life, — causes 
human emotion to turn upon itself, to its own torment and 
partial destruction.* The activity of divine Mind always 
forces every phase of evil to do just this. 

Human love, leading to sensuality and resultant evils, has 
slain untold millions ; changed to hatred, fear, and grief, it has 
fallen upon untold millions more. Considering this fact, it 
should not be difficult to understand the phrase : "Many men 
died of the waters, because they were made bitter" With the 
beginning of humanity's experience of the activity of this 
third angel, human emotion becomes in experience more bitter 
than it had been by about "a third part". 



"Science and Health," 224:7, 8. 



(XVI: 4-7) SECTION III 195 



CHAPTER XVI 

Rotherham translates verses 4-7 of chapter 16 as follows: 
"And the third poured out his bozvl into the rivers and the fountains 
of waters; and they became blood. And I heard the messenger of the 
waters saying — 

Righteous art thou Who art and Who wast, 
Who art full of loving kindness, — in that these things thou hast 
adjudged; 
Because blood of saints and prophets poured they out, and blood 
unto them hast thou given to drink: Worthy are they! 
And I heard the altar saying — ■ 
Yea! Lord God the Almighty: 
True and righteous are thy judgments!" 

The Greek phrase ho hosios in the 5th verse is represented 
by "and shalt be" in the Authorized Version. The Revised 
Version, the Twentieth Century New Testament, and Wey- 
mouth render it "the holy one". Rotherham renders it "full 
of loving kindness". "The holy one" seems nearer the ordi- 
nary lexicon sense of the phrase. It should also be noted, in 
the 7th verse, that Rotherham and others represent the altar 
itself as speaking, rather than "another out of the altar", — 
which is in accord with the Greek text, and the significance of 
which will be spoken of presently. 

In these verses of the 16th chapter, the third angel, now 
represented as pouring out the ardor of God from a libation 
saucer, is shown finishing the task which he began as angel 
of the trumpet. He is here clearly indicated as the agent of 
God; for what he accomplishes is represented as God's judg- 
ment, and God is accredited as just in this action. 

Human emotion, "the waters", instead of becoming "a 
third part" "bitter", as under the sounding of the trumpet, 
is now symbolized as water changed wholly to blood, — that 
is, becoming unnatural in character, and unfit for use, — with 
the implication that it will, in consequence, perish. 

"The angel of the waters" (verse 5) is doubtless the third 



196 REVELATION INTERPRETED (XVI-.4-7) 

angel himself, who, in chapter 2, is seen addressing a letter of 
instruction to this same phase of the activity of the human 
consciousness, thus identifying himself as its legitimate ruler, 
— that is, as the angel of the waters. Since human emotion has 
meted out destruction to mankind, and has even led to the 
slaying of "saints and prophets", it is just that destruction 
("blood to drink") should be meted out to it. In the end, 
Executive Mind does destroy it. 

The fact that "the altar' is represented in verse 7 as 
speaking, shows that the phrase is used as a symbol, not as a 
metaphor; for, as a matter of fact, an altar could not speak. 
The phrase without doubt here symbolizes the spiritualized 
human consciousness, as the true church, or as representing 
the Holy Spirit, confirming the justice of God's activity. 



VIII : 12 SECTION III 197 

The Fourth Trumpet and the Fourth Vial 

CHAPTER VIII CHAPTER XVI 

12 And the fourth angel 8 And the fourth angel poured out 

sounded, and the third part his vial upon the sun; and power 

of the sun zvas smitten, and was g i ven imt0 him to scorch men 

the third part of the moon, with fire. 

and the third part of the . . . . . 

'stars, so as the third part of 9 And men were scorched with 

them zvas darkened, and the g reat heat > and blasphemed the 

day shone not for a third name of God, which hath power 

part of it, and the night over these plagues: and they re- 

likewise. pented not to give him glory. 

This Angel is, without doubt, the Christ-mind active as 
Direct Cognition, Knozvledge-without-Reasoning, or Spiritual 
Intuition, "Mind" ', — the angel of the church at Thyatira. 

As we have previously indicated, the sun, moon, and stars 
often symbolize respectively divine Mind, the Christ-mind as 
reflecting the divine Mind, and the ideas of Mind, — or, in the 
total, the activity of divine Mind in all its phases. In verse 12, 
however, they are evidently used in a reversed lower sense, 
to symbolize material sense in the various phases of its intel- 
lectual activity. Specifically, perhaps "the sun" symbolizes 
satan ; "the moon' , the beast, or human will ; and "the stars" , 
various satanic ideas or influences. The mortal, material 
world, the realm of satan, presents, in experience, a mixture 
of "good and evil", so that it seems to have a measure of 
harmony, — a light of its own, which, in its various phases, 
John represents as coming under the activity of the angel, 
the result being that a "third part" of this false or counterfeit 
sense of harmony and intelligence is destroyed. 

In chapter 16, this same angel, being supplied with the 
full measure of the ardor of God, is represented as entirely 
destroying the supposed good or "light" of mortal intellect, 
driving it to display only, and more violently than ever, its 
discordant activity, — thus "scorching" the men who are still 
subject to it. They, not perceiving that their discomfort is 
due to mortal sense, suppose, in their ignorance, that, in some 
way, God is capriciously withholding good from them and 



198 REVELATION INTERPRETED VIII : 12 

sending evil upon them, — which supposition is in itself a 
wrong and therefore "blasphemous" thought of God, even if 
these men do not actively and purposely curse God, — the 
very God whose power would remove "these plagues" , if the 
afflicted men would turn to Him, and away from the beguile- 
ments of mortal intellect. The final activity of this angel 
practically completes the destruction of mortal intellect, since 
it will not long hold men in its service after it is prevented 
from deceiving them with a measure of apparent harmony. 



IX :1 SECTION III 199 



The Fifth Trumpet and the Fifth Vial 

The text of this trumpet is in chapter 9, verses 1-11. The 
text of the vial is in verses 10 and 11 of chapter 16. These 
may be read from the text given with the paraphrase or from a 
Bible. 

The Angel of the fifth trumpet and of the fifth vial is 
Divine Love. 

Rotherham translates 9:1 as follows: 

"And the fifth messenger sounded; and I sazv a star out of heaven 
fallen unto the earth, and there zvas given unto him the key of the shaft 
of the abyss/' 

The Authorized Version reads: 

"And the fifth angel sounded, and I saw a star fall from heaven 
unto the earth: and to him zvas given the key of the bottomless pit." 

The Greek phrear (Genitive, phreatos) means literally 
"a well". The whole phrase, he kleis ton phreatos tes abussou, 
is translated in the A. V. as "the key of the bottomless pit" ; 
in the Revised Version as "the key of the pit of the abyss", 
in which Ferrar Fenton concurs. Pryse, as "the key to the 
crater of the abyss" ; and Weymouth, "the key of the depths 
of the bottomless pit". Probably the literal foundation for the 
figure is the mythological conception of a great region below 
the earth, — supposed to be flat, — with a hole or shaft leading 
down to it, like the shaft to a mine. This nether region was 
doubtless thought of as dark and bottomless; so that the 
thought of "bottomless" is probably legitimately included in 
the definition of abussos. Probably the following would give 
us the exact literal sense of the Greek : "The key of the shaft 
of the bottomless abyss". 

The star that is fallen from heaven unto the earth is a 
belief that stands high in the estimation of men, high in their 
mental realm ("heaven"), but it is really a fallen, apostate 
belief, and belongs to "the earth". It is the belief that there 



200 REVELATION INTERPRETED ix : 1-6 

is life, sensation, pleasure, and intelligence in matter, — a belief 
which Mrs. Eddy, in Science and Health, has named "animal 
magnetism". This false belief opens for men "the bottomless 
pit", — the pit which, because it is bottomless, can hold nothing, 
and is the origin ( ?) of evil, which is really nothingness, 
though asserting a claim, terrible to those who are under its 
delusion, that it is something. Out of the bottomless pit or 
abyss ascends a great cloud of "smoke", false belief, which 
darkens spiritual light ("the, sun"), and renders the mental 
atmosphere dark and stifling. Out of this cloud of false belief 
spring a perfect swarm of fleshly desires, which have power 
to inflict suffering on men as terrible as springs from the 
stings of scorpions. 

The attack of these fleshly desires is not directed primarily 
against the normal activities of human mentality (not against 
"the grass of the' earth, neither any green thing, neither any 
tree", — see Notes oh verse 7), and they are not here consid- 
ered as directly in the field of conflict, as one and another of 
them have been considered in the first four trumpets ; but the 
attack is against those who have not "put on the whole armor 
of God", who have not been so "sealed" by God through their 
continued and perfect allegiance to Him, that they are invul- 
nerable to fleshly desires. The primary" effect of these sinful 
desires is not to kill men outright, as happens under some of 
the preceding activities ; but the primary effect is to torture 
men with resulting diseases. In Note 3 of the Introduction, 
it has been explained that "five months", the^ portion of the 
year during which locusts are active, stands for "locust-time" ; 
that is, for the entire period of the activity of satanic influ^ 
ences. In other words, as long as men will harbor sinful 
desires, so long they will be tormented with diseases. Under 
the torture of these diseases "shall men seek death, and shall 
not find it; and shall desire to die, and death shall flee from 
them" (verse 6). The symbolism of verses 7-12 may perhaps 
best be made evident by the following parallel arrangement. 



IX : 7-12 



SECTION III 



201 



10 



Amended Revised Version 

And the shapes of the lo- 
custs were like unto horses 
prepared unto battle; and 
on their heads were as it 
were crowns like gold, and 
their faces were as the faces 
of men. 

And they had hair as the 
hair of women, and their 
teeth were as the teeth of 
lions. 

And they had breastplates, 
as it were breastplates of 
iron; and the sound of their 
wings was as the sound of 
chariots of many horses run- 
ning to battle. 

And they had tails like 
unto scorpions, and there 
were stings in their tails: 
and their pozver zvas to hurt 
men five months. 

And they had a king over 
them, which is the angel of 
the bottomless pit, whose 
name in the Hebrezv tongue 
is Abaddon, but in the Greek 
tongue hath his name Apol- 
lyon. 

One zvoe is past; and be- 
hold, there come two zvoes 
more hereafter. 



Suggestive Paraphrase 

7 And these sinful desires seem, 
in human experience, powerful and 
formidable as zvar horses; and 
they seem to offer' rewards pre 
cious as gold to those who enter- 
tain them, and they present an in- 
telligent appearance. 

8 And they seem as beautiful as 
ivomen, but they wound like lions' 
teeth. 

9 And they seem to be strongly 
protected from being destroyed, 
and they are continually in evi- 
dence in great numbers and create 
great commotion. 

io And the sting of these sinful 
desires and pleasures is in their 
after-effects; and they torment 
men as long as men will entertain 
or yield to them. 

ii And the source and ruler of 
these sinful desires is he who has 
control of the realm of assertive 
error, zvhich has no foundation, 
zvho is called in the Hebrezv lan- 
guage Abaddon, and in the Greek 
language Apollyon. 

12 One of the three woes men- 
tioned before (see 8:13) has been 
revealed; and two are yet to be 
revealed. 



"The idealization of locusts into an army of destruction 
is the great symbol running through "Joel (2:1-11)". — 
Moulton. 

CHAPTER XVI 

The text of the fifth vial is given in verses 10, 11 of 
chapter 16. 

"And the fifth Angel poured out his vial upon the seat of the beast, 
and his kingdom zvas full of darkness, and they gnawed their tongues 
for pain, >and blasphemed the God of heaven, because of their pains, 
and their sores, and repented not of their deeds." 

Under the fifth vial, the judgment against licentiousness 
and the licentious is brought to completion. From a study 
of chapters 12 and 13, we see that "the seat of the beast" is 



202 REVELATION INTERPRETED (XVI : 10, 11) 

"the dragon" , "the devil and sat an" , general mortal belief, 
"animal magnetism". This belief that there is life, pleasure, 
and intelligence in matter is so crowded to destruction by the 
activity of this angel exercising the full measure of the ardor 
of God, and is so aggravated just before destruction, that it 
terribly afflicts those under its sway, so that they are seen 
"gnawing their tongues for pain, and blaspheming the God of 
heaven because of their pains and their sores". As is usual 
with the thoroughly ungodly, they do not see that their own 
sins are the source of their sufferings, but attribute their 
sufferings to what they assume to be the caprice of God, and 
so they curse Him. 



IX : 13, 14 SECTION HI 203 

The Sixth Trumpet and the Sixth Vial 

The text of this trumpet is given in chapter g, verses 
13-21, quod vide. 

Verses 13, 14 "And the sixth Angel sounded, and I heard a voice 
from the four horns of the golden altar, which is before God, saying to 
the sixth Angel which had the trumpet, Loose the four Angels which 
are bound in the great river Euphrates/' 

This Angel is the angel of the church at Philadelphia, the 
Christ-mind in its activity as Perception of Reality, "Truth". 
The activity of this angel is against idolatry and idolaters, as 
shown by verses 20 and 21. 

"And the rest of the men, which were not killed by these plagues, 
yet repented not of the works of their hands, that they should not 
worship devils, and idols of gold, and silver, and brass, and stone, and 
wood; which neither can see, nor hear, nor walk. Neither repented 
they of their murders, nor of their sorceries, nor of their fornication, 
nor of their thefts." 

The "voice from the golden altar" is a symbol for the 
Holy Spirit or some activity thereof. It will require a bit of 
preparatory statement to make clear what is meant by "the 
great river Euphrates" . 

The ancient city of Babylon, which was at the heighth 
of its power about 600 B. C, was the embodiment of world- 
liness, superstition, tyranny, cruelty, lust, sorcery, material- 
ism, carnality, false doctrine, — all that was apostate from 
Spirit and Christ. Among the Jews, Babylon was the symbol 
of all the above evil influences, — all of which have their root 
in, and follow in the train of, false belief or superstition. 
The river Euphrates ran through Babylon. It was the avenue 
of the city's commerce and the source of the city's water 
supply, — and so was, in a sense, the source or support of the 
city's material life. Hence, it is used as a symbol of the 
stream of superstition or false belief in human consciousness.* 

* Mr. F. L. Rawson writes : "The 'River Euphrates' I take to mean 
the scientific world" ; that is, the learning of natural science, upholding 
material belief. 



204 REVELATION INTERPRETED IX : 15 

In the phrase "the four angels" ', in verse 14 above, "four" 
is evidently used in the customary collective sense ; and "the 
four Angels' here stand for the spiritualized factor in human 
consciousness, — the consciousness which was formerly in the 
service of the world, as indicated by the world-sign "four", — 
a factor which St. John here represents as only potential, 
indicating that it is held in check or suppressed at or by "the 
great river Euphrates" , — that is, by the stream of human 
superstition ; but the command is, that the Angel shall "loose" 
the human consciousness from this bondage, — with the result 
that, as we shall soon see, the spiritual factor in human con- 
sciousness (the manifestation of the Holy Spirit), being 
thus "loosed", becomes militant, — becomes the very activity 
of the Holy Spirit against evil and evil-doers. 

As was fully discussed and illustrated in the interpretation 
of verse 7 of chapter 8 (which see), there is no punishment or 
suffering or death for even mortal men in divine Mind, or in 
any of its activities or manifestations, but when the divine 
Mind and its manifestations act upon mortal mind, causing 
it to react, there arise mental "storms" which are very afflictive 
and destructive to human beings who are exposed to them. 
Thus, in verse 7 of chapter 8, the activity of the first angel is 
represented as stirring up the destructive influences which are 
symbolized under the figure of a violent hail storm. In verse 
15 of the chapter we are now considering, the "four Angels" , 
which are "loosed" by the activity of the sixth angel, are rep- 
resented as also stirring up destructive activities, which are 
to "slay the third part of men". Verse 15 is as follows: 

"And the four Angels zvere loosed, and were prepared for an hour, 
and a day, and a month, and a year, for to slay the third part of men." 

The four time periods mentioned would seem to indicate 
that the "four Angels", the spiritualized factor in human con- 
sciousness, are ready for service for any length of time, short 
or long, that may be necessary to accomplish their work. 



IX : 16-18 SECTION III 205 

Verse 16 "And the number of the army of the horsemen were two 
hundred thousand thousand: and I heard the number of them." 

The activity of the Christ-mind, or of the Holy Spirit, 
which in verse 13 is represented by the "sixth Angel", and in 
verses 14, 15 by "the four Angels", is now represented by 
the "army of horsemen" . This army of "two hundred thou- 
sand thousand" doubtless symbolizes the activity of the infinite 
number of divine ideas, — or possibly even the activity of the 
spiritual factors in the mentalities of the great host of Christ's 
people on earth in all the centuries, — mentally and actively 
enforcing the law of God. 

Verses 17, 18 "And thus I saw the horses in the vision, and them 
that sat on them, having breastplates of fire and jacinth (smoky blue), 
and brimstone, and the heads of the horses were as the heads of lions, 
and out of their months issued fire, and smoke, and brimstone. By 
these three was the third part of men killed, by the fire, and by the 
smoke, and by the brimstone which issued out of their mouths." 

While, as indicated before, there is nothing destructive to 
men in any of the activities or manifestations of divine Mind 
as such, yet these activities, acting upon mortal mind and 
meeting resistance, stir up resultant activities which are very 
destructive ; and here, as in many places, St. John seems to 
attribute, rather undiscriminatingly, to the divine agencies a 
destruction of men which, strictly speaking, should be attrib- 
uted to the satanic element in the "storms" stirred up through 
the action and* reaction of divine and satanic agencies. To 
mortal sense in its various phases, the activity of divine Mind 
as the Holy Spirit or as Angels or militant ideas, is as destruc- 
tive as "fire", as blinding as "smoke", and as stifling and 
choking as "brimstone" . It is by reason of this fact that, in 
various places in the Apocalypse, the Holy Spirit, or its 
activity, is symbolized by "fire, smoke, and brimstone" . The 
horses and their riders, in verses 17, 18, are represented by 
these symbols as destructive to men enmeshed in material 
sense. As a matter of fact, as the spiritual consciousness 
becomes active in the world, it does stir up the evil factors in 



206 REVELATION INTERPRETED IX : 19 

the mentalities of many men who resist it, resulting in disease 
and death. Then, too, as the spiritual consciousness begins 
to become active among men, it fills them and the so-called 
Christian nations with missionary zeal, on a rather low plane ; 
and they go forth to convert the so-called heathen. The 
comparatively few who are receptive to their message are 
kindly treated, but they conceive it to be their duty to make 
war with sword and gun on the "heathen" who will not 
accept their teaching. The history of the last nineteen cen- 
turies is filled with records of wars and expeditions of this 
kind. As a result, the world has been drenched with the blood 
of the so-called heathen, and of the so-called Christians, in 
conflicts which have been brought to pass upon the field of 
human activity by the small measure of the Christ-conscious- 
ness or Holy Spirit which so-called Christian p©oples have 
received at the beginning of their receptivity of the higher 
consciousness. When men enter into a larger measure of the 
realization of the Holy Spirit and its activities, they are still 
militant against evil, but they know that evil is not to be 
destroyed by killing men, even if they seem to be evil-doers, 
and, accordingly, more advanced followers of Christ do not 
try to destroy evil in that way. However, it is safe to say 
that, in the two ways mentioned, literally cc a third part of 
men" have been put to death during the last nineteen centuries, 
sooner than they otherwise would have died, through the 
activities stirred up in the world and in the fields of personal 
consciousness by the advent of the Christ-mind among men. 

Verse 19 "For their pozver is in their mouth, and in their tails: 
for their tails were like unto serpents, and had heads, and with them 
they do hurt." 

The "power in their mouth". (It is instructive to note 
that, though the horsemen are represented as two hundred 
thousand thousand, they are here represented as having only 
one "mouth", which is a way of signifying the fact that their 
joint activities are the one activity of the Holy Spirit). The 



IX : 20, 21 SECTION III 207 

"power in their mouth" may symbolize the initial effect of 
the activity of the Holy Spirit as it becomes a factor in any 
human situation, while "the power in their tails" may sym- 
bolize the after effects of any activity of the Holy Spirit. 
It is plain to be seen that where the initial activity, or recep- 
tion of small measures, of the Christ-mind stirs up religious 
wars, its first effect is destructive, and it also sets in motion a 
train of consequences which trail along with destructive 
effects for years afterward, — even giving rise to feuds and 
hostilities which are deliberately and purposely kept alive, 
sometimes for centuries. This may be a reason why these 
after effects, or "tails", are said to "have heads" which 
"hurt". Because of the initial strife which was destructive, 
other strifes, which will continue to be destructive, are delib- 
erately planned for, manifesting evil intelligence, symbolized 
by "the head" . In the field of personal consciousness, there 
is often a similar result. The reception of the Holy Spirit 
may be attended by a painful mental struggle at the start, 
during which several or more wicked tendencies in conscious- 
ness are slain, and then there continues to be a struggle 
between good and evil for an indefinite period afterward, 
during which still other evil activities are slain, — often with 
painful results in mind and body while the struggle goes on 
and the elements of the lower nature are being put to death; 
and yet there is "a more excellent way", — that of "painless 
progress", for those who can demonstrate it. 

Verses 20, 21 "And the rest of the men which were not killed by 
these plagues, yet repented not of the works of their hands, that they 
should not worship devils, and idols of gold, and silver, and brass, and 
stone, and of zvood, which neither can see, nor hear, nor walk: neither 
repented they of their murders, nor of their sorceries, nor of their 
fornication, nor of their thefts." 

St. John here indicates that, notwithstanding that the Holy 
Spirit becomes active enough in the world to stir up the 
destructive activities above described, — even to the extent of 
about a third of mankind being slain, — yet for an indefinite 



208 REVELATION INTERPRETED (XVI : 12) 

period, century after century, the vast majority of the 
remainder of men will continue on with their superstitions, 
idolatries, and sins. Only when the sixth Angel finally dis- 
cards the trumpet and receives the libation saucer filled with 
the full measure of the ardor of God will his activities become 
so complete that the wickedness of men will be brought near 
its end ; but, strictly speaking, the change is not in the activity 
of the angel, but in humanity's near approach to and more 
direct reception of that activity. 

CHAPTER XVI 

Verse 12 of chapter 16 reads : 

"And the sixth Angel poured out his rial upon- the great river 
Euphrates, and the water thereof was dried up, that the way of the 
Kings of the East might be prepared." 

When Cyrus the Persian besieged Babylon, being unable to 
capture it by other means, he dug a great trench outside the 
city's walls, and diverted the Euphrates around the city. Thus 
he cut off the water supply of the city, and was finally able to 
march his troops into the city in the old river bed, which he 
had made dry, leaving an opening in the wall where it had 
formerly flowed. This historical fact probably furnishes the 
basis of the above symbolism. As daylight dawns in the East, 
and seems to proceed from the East, the East is here taken 
as the symbol of spiritual light, or the Christ-mind; and the 
"Kings of the East" are the followers of the Christ, mentally 
and actively enforcing the law of God against superstition 
and false belief ("the great river Euphrates"), until "the water 
thereof dries up" ; that is, until the stream of false belief in 
human consciousness is fully overcome and disappears. Thus 
will mental Babylon be overthrown, as was ancient Babylon, 
the seat of wickedness. 

Between the sixth and seventh trumpets there are intro- 
duced two important visions (chapter 10:1 to chapter 11:14), 
the interpretation of which we shall next consider. 



NOTES BY THE READER 209 



210 NOTES BY THE READER 



X:l,2 SECTION III 211 



Chapter X 
John's Vision of the Full Truth 

Verse I "And I saw another mighty Angel come down from 
heaven, clothed with a cloud: and a rainbow was upon his head, and 
his face was as it were the sun, and his feet as pillars of fire." 

In Science and Health, page 558, Mrs. Eddy has beauti- 
fully interpreted this verse. The gist of her interpretation is 
that : "This angel or message which comes from God, clothed 
with a cloud, prefigures divine Science. To mortal sense 
Science seems at first obscure, abstract, and dark ["the 
cloud"] ; but a bright promise ["the rainbow"] crowns its 
brow. When understood, it is Truth's prism and praise. 
When you look it fairly in the face, you can heal by its 
means and it has for you a light above the sun, for God 'is 
the light thereof. Its feet are pillars of fire, foundations of 
Truth and Love". "Truth and Love" destroy or "burn up" 
error in human consciousness, and so are symbolized by 
"fire". 

Verse 2 "And he had in his hand a little hook open: and he set 
his right foot upon the sea, and his left foot on the earth." 

The Angel of verse 1 is undoubtedly the Christ, "Jesus 
Christ."* The Greek diminutive biblaridion, translated "a 
little book", may be used, as we often use diminutives, as a 
term of endearment, in the sense of "precious". This view 
is strengthened by the fact that, in verse 1 of chapter 14, 
John speaks of the Christ under the symbol of arnion, meaning 
"a little lamb", and so generally throughout the book, instead 
of employing amnos, which means "a lamb". There is no 
evident reason for his using the diminutive form, except as 
an expression of endearment. The term "little" may also 
indicate that the message is comparatively brief, in comparison 
with its mighty import. 

* See "Prologue," on page 29 of this book, for interpretation of this 
term. 



212 REVELATION INTERPRETED X:3 

It has been suggested by at least one commentator that 
the "little book" refers to the message of the Apocalypse 
itself, represented, in chapter 5, as "a book sealed with seven 
seals" in the right hand of the Father; but there should be a 
definite article before biblaridion, if it refers back to biblion 
of the 5th chapter; but no Greek manuscript gives such an 
article. The "little book" doubtless refers specifically to the 
message of divine Science, the same order of revelation as 
has now been given to the world in "Science and Health with 
Key to the Scriptures", as distinguished from, though in part 
at least included in, the message of the Apocalypse as a whole. 

In Science and Health", on page 559, Mrs. Eddy wrote: 
"This angel had in his hand 'a little book', open. . . . 
Did this same book contain the revelation of divine Science, 
the 'right foot' or dominant power of which was was upon 
the sea, — upon elementary, latent error, the source of all error's 
visible forms? The angel's left foot was upon the earth; that 
is, a secondary power was exercised upon visible error and 
audible sin. The 'still, small voice' of scientific thought 
reaches over continent and ocean to the globe's remotest 
bound." 

In a more narrow and technical sense, "the sea" probably 
symbolizes the sensuous element in human consciousness, and 
"the earth" symbolizes materiality and sensuality. 

Verse 3 "And {the Angel) cried zvith a loud voice, as when a Lion 
roareth: and zvhen he had cried, seven thunders uttered their voices." 

The "loud voice, as when a Lion roareth" of the angel 
symbolizes the majesty and impressiveness of the message, 
as it is given to John. The Revised Version more correctly 
renders the Greek by, "and when he cried, the seven thunders 
uttered their voices" , omitting "had" before "cried". In other 
words, the proclamations of the angel and of the "thunders" 
were coincident in point of time. Throughout the Scriptures, 
"thunder" is the conventional symbol for the utterance of God 



X:4-7 SECTION III 213 

or of the Holy Spirit, as any student can readily satisfy him- 
self by examining a concordance. In the verse which we 
are now considering, the "seven thunders" doubtless repre- 
sent the utterance of "the seven Spirits, which are before the 
throne of God", which, considered collectively, are the Holy 
Spirit; and their utterance ("seven" being the number of 
completeness) is the message of the full truth, divine Science, 
"the spirit of Truth, which shall lead you into all truth". 
The proclamation of the full truth would doubtless, as Mrs. 
Eddy suggests on page 559 of "Science and Health", "arouse 
the 'seven thunders' of evil, and stir their latent forces to 
utter the full diapason of secret tones", driving them to final 
destruction, — as she further says : "Then is the power of 
Truth demonstrated, — made manifest in the destruction of 
error". 

Verse 4 "And when the seven thunders had uttered their voices, I 
was about to write: and I heard a voice from heaven, saying unto me, 
Seal up those things which the seven thunders uttered, and write them 
not." 

This seems to indicate that, when the vision of the full 
truth came to John, his first impulse was to write what was 
revealed to him and give it to the world in plain language; 
but immediately "the spirit of wisdom", "a voice from heaven" , 
commanded him not to reveal ''those things which the seven 
thunders uttered", — not to "write", but to "seal up" the mes- 
sage. 

Verses 5-7 "And the Angel which I saw stand upon the sea, and 
upon the earth, lifted up his hand to heaven, and szvare by him that 
liveth for ever and ever, who created heaven, and the things that therein 
are, and the earth, and the things that therein are, and the sea, and the 
things which are therein, that there should be time no longer. But in 
the days of the voice of the seventh Angel, zvhen he shall begin to 
sound, the mystery of God should be finished, as he hath declared to 
his servants the Prophets." 



214 REVELATION INTERPRETED X:4-7 

The Christ is here represented as affirming most solemnly 
that the time-sense, the temporal sense, of things shall cease, 
— with an implication that it is the proclamation of the seventh 
Angel which will usher in the spiritual, eternal sense, which 
shall cause the time-sense to disappear. Then St. John goes 
on to say that when the world shall begin to receive the 
spiritual message of the seventh Angel, — which is to be under- 
stood as the final and complete message, ''seven" being the 
number of completeness, — "the mystery of God should be 
finished"; that is, the message sealed up in the Apocalypse 
will then be unsealed, so that all may plainly understand. 
In verse 10 of chapter 22, the Angel says to John: "Seal not 
the sayings of the prophecy of this book: for the time is at 
hand". 

As indicated in the Introduction, and as will be freely 
acknowledged by all those who understand it, Christian 
Science is beginning to give to the world a knowledge of all 
things as being spiritual and eternal, when perceived as they 
are, thus causing the time-sense of things to be regarded as 
invalid and untrustworthy; that is, to be believed no more. 
Accordingly, it is evident that we are now in the midst of the 
activity of the seventh Angel, — the very period of human 
development when the Apocalypse itself states that its message 
shall be plainly revealed. 

Some translators render the fundamental thought in verses 
6 and 7 as follows : And sware by him that liveth unto the 
ages of the ages that there shall be no more delay; but that, 
in the days of the proclamation of the seventh Angel, . . . 
the mystery of God shall be revealed. 

This is equivalent to a declaration that the final and com- 
plete revelation will not be delayed beyond the days of the 
beginning of the proclamation of the seventh Angel. There 
is in this interpretation no direct teaching that the time-sense 
shall vanish, — though that will be the fact, nevertheless. 



X:8-ll SECTION III 215 

Verses 8-10 "And the voice which I heard from heaven spake unto 
me again, and said, Go, and take the little book which is open in the 
hand of the Angel which standeth upon the sea, and upon the earth. 
And I went unto the Angel, and said unto him, Give me the little book. 
And he said unto me, Take it, and eat it up, and it shall make thy belly 
bitter, but it shall be in thy mouth sweet as honey. And I took the 
little book out of the Angel's hand, and ate it up, and it was in my 
mouth sweet as honey: and as soon as I had eaten it, my belly was 
bitter:' 

The import of these verses may be taken in a two-fold 
sense : 

First, that the perception of the full truth is delightful to 
the understanding, but that the working toward it in experi- 
ence, the "digestion" of it, is "bitter", — as is also the fore- 
view of what the human race will have to go through in 
attaining the demonstration of the full truth. 

Second, that the reception of the full truth into daily living, 
in the endeavor to work it out, is "sweet as honey" to the 
higher elements in human nature, symbolized by the mouth, 
but is destructive and "bitter" to the lower elements in human 
nature, symbolized by the belly, — at least, St. John so found 
it in experience. 

Verse 11 "And he said unto me, Thou must prophesy again before 
many peoples, and nations, and tongues, and kings." 

If this translation be correct, this may be taken as a declara- 
tion that, after the meaning of the Apocalypse is unsealed so 
that all may plainly understand its message, John will again 
become, through this message, a living prophet to a great host 
of the world's population. 

The Greek preposition epi (translated "before" in the A.V., 
as above) is translated in the Revised Version "over", with 
"concerning" in the margin. Rotherham translates it 
"against", as does also Farrer Fenton. Pryse renders it "in 
opposition to" ; Weymouth, "concerning" ; and the Twentieth 
Century New Testament, "about". 



216 REVELATION INTERPRETED X : 11 

"In opposition to'', or "in the face of", is the most charac- 
teristic of all these meanings for epi, when used with the 
dative case, as it is in this text. If this is the correct sense, 
then the meaning is, that John must prophesy again, as he had 
previously done in his Gospel, against the worldly sense of 
things, as represented in the thought of "many nations, peoples, 
tongues and rulers". With the genitive case, epi characteris- 
tically means "before", or "in the presence of", as in the 
Authorized Version ; but all Greek manuscripts give the dative 
in this verse following epi, instead of the genitive. 



NOTES BY THE READER 217 



218 NOTES BY THE READER 



XI: 1,2 SECTION III 219 

Chapter XIn-13 
A Vision of the Activity of the Holy Spirit 

Verses 1, 2 "And there ivas given me a reed like unto a rod, and 
the Angel stood, saying, Rise, and measure the Temple of God, and 
the Altar, and them that worship therein. But the Court which is with- 
out the Temple leave out, and measure it not: for it is given unto the 
Gentiles, and the Holy City shall they tread under foot forty and two 
months." 

Having been given the full truth, John was now able to use 
it as a Principle to separate between truth and falsehood, — ■ 
somewhat as follows : 

If God is sole creator, then all that really is proceeds from 
Him as Source. It is axiomatic that nothing can come out of 
a source unlike what is in the source. Hence, nothing has 
ever proceeded from God which is unlike God ; and, if it be 
true that He is sole creator, sole Source, then whatever appears 
ungodlike in human experience cannot represent things as 
they are, but must merely represent a false sense of things. 
The real universe, the real man, proceeding from God, must 
be like their Source, — that is, like Spirit, or spiritual ; like the 
eternal God, or eternal; like the perfect God, or perfect; like 
the infinite God, or infinite. On the other hand, those mani- 
festations in human experience which appear material, tem- 
porary, imperfect, and finite, are ungodlike in character, and 
so must be untrue and unreal, — and should always be denied, 
and never affirmed. Accordingly, it is evident that the factor 
in human consciousness which thinks in terms of the spiritual, 
the eternal, the perfect, and the infinite, is godlike or true 
consciousness ; and this is the true church, and is symbolized 
in verse 1 as "the Temple of God, and the Altar, and them 
that worship therein'. The "reed like unto a rod" is "the 
Spirit of truth", "the Holy Spirit", used as Principle in the 
manner above described. It is also evident that the factor in 
human consciousness which thinks in terms of the material, 



220 REVELATION INTERPRETED XI : 3 

the temporary, the imperfect, and the finite, is false conscious- 
ness, opposing the true church. This false consciousness is 
symbolized in verse 2 as "the Court which is without the Tem- 
ple, . . . given unto the Gentiles." It cannot be meas- 
ured in terms of Principle ; so St. John is directed to "leave 
it out, and measure it not/' The Gentiles, the slaves of false 
consciousness, will, in human experience, "tread under foot" , 
or keep in subordinate position, the spiritual consciousness, 
"the Holy City", during the period of the supremacy of 
satanic activity in the world, — a period symbolized by "forty 
and two months" ' , equivalent to 3^ years, half of "seven" 
years, half of all years, or half of the time-period, as more 
fully explained in Note 3 of the Introduction. 

Verse 3 "And I will gke power unto my tivo* witnesses, and they 
shall prophesy a thousand two hundred and three score days clothed in 
sackcloth" 

The broadest and most widely applicable interpretation 
for the "two witnesses" of the Christ is to consider them as 
truth and love. Their united activity constitutes the activity 
of the Holy Spirit in human consciousness. Their joint and 
balanced activity is necessary to the accomplishment of any- 
thing worth while in the human realm, as the following brief 
statement may serve to show : 

The Union of Truth and Love 

In the divine Mind, truth and love are constantly and 
indissolubly wedded. All human undertakings which are to 
count for anything must exemplify this union, for it is "accord- 
ing to the pattern shewed to thee in the mount". "Be ye per- 
fect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect." 

It is one of the "wiles of the devil" to try to divorce truth 
and love in the consciousness of men, and to make them believe 
that truth can be advanced through war and strife, carried on 
with motives of anger, hatred, revenge, self-interest, or self- 

* Note the use here of the Spirit-sign "two," and see Note 2 of the Intro- 
duction. 



XI: 4 SECTION III 221 

justification. Ever and anon, problems of importance must be 
discussed and settled in our families, in our churches, in our 
business relations, and in the larger negotiations of politics, 
law, government, religion, and diplomacy. In these discus- 
sions, let us defeat the "one evil" through understanding and 
bearing in mind that, by no amount of argument, however 
valid, and by no amount of force of any kind, can we success- 
fully promulgate truth and permanently bring to pass the cor- 
rect issue, unless, during our efforts, we purposely and habitu- 
ally exercise the spirit of good-will. In dealing with others, 
reasoning and good-will are as the wings of a bird. If a bird 
tries to fly with only one wing, he whirls round and round, to 
his own confusion, getting nowhere ; but using both wings, he 
makes much progress. 

Only as the male principle, truth, and the female principle, 
love, are wedded in our consciousness can we obey the spiritual 
command: "Be fruitful (of righteous thoughts and deeds), 
and multiply (them), and replenish the earth (with them), 
and subdue it." Truth will go no farther and no faster than 
love goes as a companion. "What therefore God hath joined 
together, let no man put asunder." 

St. John's statement is that these two witnesses will be 
active in human consciousness during 1260 apocalyptic days, 
equivalent to 42 months, and symbolical of the period of the 
apparent supremacy of satanic activity in the world, during 
which period these two witnesses will perform their work in 
an apparently subordinate position, "clothed in sackcloth" ', — 
that is, they will not have that supreme and unquestioned 
place in the world to which they are entitled. 

Verse 4 "These are the two olive trees, and the two candlesticks, 
standing before the God of the earth." 

This symbolism is echoed from Zech. 4:3, 11, 14; and John 
here likens truth and love to two lighted candlesticks, fed by 
the oil of two olive trees, standing before the throne of God, 
and lighting men, so far as they are ready to receive light. 
The whole verse is a symbol of the Holy Spirit. 



222 REVELATION INTERPRETED XI : 5-7 

Verse 5 "And if any man will hurt them, fire proceedeth out of 
their mouth, and devoureth their enemies: and if any man will hurt 
them, he must in this manner be killed." 

If any man tries to hurt the Holy Spirit (truth and love), 
he has only error with which to do so, and this error the Holy 
Spirit destroys when they come in conflict : and if any man 
persistently attacks the Holy Spirit with a given error or 
malicious purpose, he is thrown back by the Holy Spirit as 
from a wall of adamant to have his mortal life destroyed by 
that same error. Note that, although the "witnesses" are 
"two", they are spoken of as having only one "mouth", indi- 
cating their essential unity. ■ ■■ 

Verse 6 "These have power to shut heaven, that it rain not in the 
days of their prophecy: and have power over waters to turn them to 
blood, and to smite the earth zvith all plagues, as often as they will." 

Harmony is included within the life of obedience to truth 
and love, and while these witnesses are held in a subordinate 
position by men, men are excluded from harmony; and 
because of this, mankind (see chapter 17:15) will be engaged 
in bloody wars, and smitten with plagues, as long and as often 
as men neglect these witnesses. Verse 15 of chapter 17, 
referred to in the parenthesis above, reads : "The waters 
which thou sawest, where the whore sitteth, are peoples, and 
multitudes, and nations, and tongues." So "mankind" is the 
evident meaning of "waters" in verse 6 above. 

Verse 7. This verse seems to the author to be falsely 
rendered in all of the seven translations which he has exam- 
ined. They all substantially agree with the Authorized Ver- 
sion in the following rendering: 

"And when they shall have finished their testimony, the beast that 
ascendeth out of the bottomless pit shall make war against them, and 
shall overcome them, and kill them." 

The question of translation is concerning the first clause, 
the Greek of which is : Kai ho tan teles osi ten marturian 



XI: 8 SECTION HI 223 

anton. The primary or derivative sense of telesbsi is. unques- 
tionably "shall finish". This is the only argument in favor 
of the translation above given. On the other hand, the verb 
tele 6 is very commonly used in the Greek in the sense of 
"perform", as any student can satisfy himself by consulting 
Liddell & Scott. Also, marturian is quite as correctly trans- 
lated by "witnessing" as by "testimony". Hot an very seldom 
means "when", but almost invariably "whenever", or "as long 
as". Accordingly, a translation of the clause, equally correct 
with the one given in the A. V., is : "And whenever they 
shall perform their witnessing". This translation is in accord 
with the general line of John's thought in various passages 
of the Apocalypse, and is capable of a rational interpretation 
in connection with its context, as we shall presently see, while 
the other rendering gives a meaning which cannot be har- 
monized with its context to bring out a satisfactory exposi- 
tion. This is the deciding argument in favor of the latter 
translation, in accordance with which the meaning of the 
whole verse would be : 

And whenever they shall perform their witnessing, the activity of 
satanic domination, exercising itself through human will and authority, 
will make war against them, and will overcome them, and will seem to 
suppress them entirely in the realm of human activity. While the 
so-called Christian nations have had some degree of the letter of truth 
in all the centuries since the ascension of Jesus, they have had so 
little of the spirit of Truth that the Holy Spirit may fairly be said 
to have been "dead" or "killed" among them. 

Verse 8 "And their dead bodies shall He in the street of the great 
city, which spiritually is called Sodom and Egypt, where also our Lord 
zvas crucified." 

Here again is a mistranslation, in that the plural "bodies" 
is given instead of the singular "body", as in the Greek text. 
This point of rendering is important, since "the two wit- 
nesses" clearly stand for a unified entity, the Holy Spirit, 
which should therefore be thought of as having one "body" 



224 REVELATION INTERPRETED XI : 9, 10 

(if any at all), and not as having "bodies". The "two" is 
used in a merely symbolical sense, and does not mean literally 
"two", just as the "four", in the phrase "four living crea- 
tures", does not indicate four separate entities, but is used in 
a merely collective sense. 

The "dead body" of the two witnesses may be taken to 
indicate that worldly and visible church which is practically 
devoid of the Holy Spirit, unable to perform, to any con- 
siderable extent, the works of the Spirit. Mortal sense does 
not put this worldly church, spiritually dead, out of sight, — 
does not bury it, as it would the lifeless body of a man, — but 
keeps it in evidence. "The great city, zvhich spiritually is 
called Sodom and Egypt, where also our Lord was crucified'' 
is a symbolic description of the realm of mortal consciousness, 
as u the Holy City' is symbolical of the realm of spiritual con- 
sciousness. It was in the realm of mortal consciousness that 
the crucifixion of Jesus was conceived and executed. 

Verses 9, 10 "And they of the people, and kindreds, and tongues, 
and nations, shall see their dead bodies (body) three days and a half, 
and shall not suffer their dead bodies to be put in graves (the grave). 
And they that dzcell upon the earth shall rejoice over them, and make 
merry, and shall send gifts one to another, because these tzvo prophets 
tormented them that dwell on the earth." 

The worldly nations, "they that dzvell upon the earth" 
(that is, in material sense) shall look upon the spiritually life- 
less worldly church "three days and a half (which, as indi- 
cated in Note 3 of the Introduction, symbolizes half of the 
time-period, or the period of satanic ascendency), and, as 
previously indicated, will not put it out of sight, but will 
keep it in evidence as "a laughing stock", making merry 
because the church is "dead", since, if it were spiritually 
alive, "the two prophets" (truth and love, the Holy Spirit) 
would be active in the world, and would torment, and inter- 
fere with the plans and pleasures of, those who dwell in 
material sense. 



XI: 11-13 SECTION III 225 

Verse n "And after three days and a half the Spirit of life from 
God entered into them: and they stood upon their feet, and great fear 
fell upon them which saw them." 

At the end of the period of satanic ascendency (sym- 
bolized by "three days and a half"), the millennial period of 
harmony on earth, when satan, discord, will be "bound" 
(20:2), will be ushered in, as previously indicated, and as fully 
explained in the Notes on chapter 20. This is the period 
when the Holy Spirit, which has so long seemed without life 
in the world, will become the ruling Spirit of this world, as it 
always is of the absolute realm. The evidence of life and 
strong activity on the part of truth and love will cause con- 
sternation among the dwellers in material sense, the very 
ones who had been making merry at their apparent lifeless- 
ness. 

Verse 12 "And they heard a great voice from heaven, saying unto 
. them, Come up hither. And they ascended up to heaven in a cloud, and 
their enemies beheld them" 

Truth and love now assume an exalted position, even in 
the sight of the world, though their real nature and signifi- 
cance is "clouded" (not understood) to their enemies, the 
worldly minded, who behold them. 

Verse 13 "And the same hour was there a great earthquake, and 
the tenth part of the city fell, and in the earthquake were slain (names) 
of men seven thousand: and the remnant were affrighted, and gave 
glory to the God of heaven."* 

The word "names" appears in the margin of both the 
Authorized and Revised Versions, and translates the word 
onomata (plural of onoma) in the Greek text. There is no 
possibility of getting a right sense of John's meaning in this 

* Mr. F. L. Rawson suggests that, in historical interpretation, this 
verse forecasts "the French Revolution and the number of aristocracy 
slain, which was just about seven thousand. The remainder, who had 
been atheistic^ immediately after the terrors had abated became re- 
ligious, and revived religious services." 



226 REVELATION INTERPRETED XI : 13 

verse without including the translation of this word, and with- 
out also considering the symbolic rather than the literal sense 
of "seven" and "a thousand". 

The Greek onoma, like the English "name", means primar- 
ily a distinguishing appellative, the written or vocalized word 
by which a person, place or thing is known ; but there comes 
to be associated with every person's name a sense of his 
nature or character, and of his authority and power, if he 
has any. In this way, the Greek onoma came to have such 
meanings as "nature", "character", "authority", "power". Its 
use in such a sense can readily be discerned in the following 
verses of Scripture : 

"Many believed in his name {divine nature and authority) , when 
they saw the miracles which he did." — John 2 123. 

"I am come in my Father's name {authority), and ye received me 
not: if another shall come in his own name {authority) , him ye will 
receive." — John 5 143. 

"I have manifested thy name {nature and character) unto the men . 
which thou gavest me out of the world." — John 17:6. 

"And it shall come to pass, that zvhosoever shall call on the name 
{power) of the Lord shall be saved." — Acts 2:21. 

"There is none other name {character or nature) under heaven 
given among men, whereby we must be saved." — Acts 4:12. 

In the next place, it is necessary to know, as one can learn 
by consulting Liddell & Scott's Greek Lexicon, that the Greek 
onoma frequently means "a name and nothing else, opposite 
to the real person or thing." Hence, onoma may mean false 
or mortal character or nature, as opposed to real, spiritual 
nature, and this is what it does mean in the verse under con- 
sideration. The "thousand" signifies spiritual conquerors, 
and "seven" signifies the complete number. The meaning of 
the entire verse is as follows : 

At the time that the Holy Spirit attains the ascendency in human 
consciousness, there will be a great mental upheaval ("earthquake"), 
and a large number ("a tenth part") of the factors in mortal conscious- 
ness ("the city") will be destroyed, and in this period of transition and 
upheaval the mortal natures or characters of all ("seven") who attain 



(XVI : 13-16) SECTION HI 227 

spiritual conquest ("thousand") at this time will be destroyed ("slain") : 
and those who are not regenerated will nevertheless continue there- 
after in fear and trembling, and will recognize God's glory and authority, 
as the worldly never had during the period of apparent satanic 
ascendency. 

"Three Unclean Spirits Like Frogs" 

Following the sixth trumpet, St. John introduced an 
episode, which occupies the text of chapter 10, and of chapter 
ii as far as the 13th verse, the interpretation of which we 
have considered. 

CHAPTER XVI 

Following the sixth vial, John introduces an episode, chap- 
ter 16:13-16, the text of which is as follows: 

13 "And I saw three unclean spirits like frogs come out of the 
mouth of the dragon, and out of the mouth of the beast, and out of 
the mouth of the false prophet. 

14 For they are the spirits of devils zvorking miracles, which go 
forth unto the Kings of the earth, and of the zvhole world, to gather 
them, to the battle of that great day of God Almighty. Behold, I come 
as a thief. 

15 Blessed is he that zvatcheth, and keepeth his garments, lest he 
walk naked, and they see his shame. 

16 And he {"they," according to Revised Version] gathered them 
together into a place, called in the Hebrew tongue, Armageddon." 

These unclean, miracle-working spirits may be identified 
as follows: 

That "out of the mouth of the dragon" (the devil) is heal- 
ing through hypnotism, mental therapeutics, suggestion, etc. 

That "out of the mouth of the beast" (civil misgovern- 
ment) is legalized materia medica. 

That "out of the mouth of the false prophet" (the worldly 
church) is healing through blind faith, shrines, relics, etc. 

All these are radically opposed to the true, spiritual heal- 
ing of Christ ; and to the spiritually minded they are as loath- 
some in appearance as frogs are to the material vision. God 



228 SECTION III (XVI : 15) 

says (verse 15), "Behold, I come as a thief" This is equiva- 
lent to a declaration that no man can tell when any of his 
evil deeds will accumulate to the point of effectual judgment 
by truth; in other words, no evil doer can tell when his "day 
of reckoning" will come. This same thought is very tersely 
stated in "The Dhammapada" : 

"Even an evil-doer sees happiness so long as his evil deed does not 
ripen; but when his evil deed ripens, then does the evil-doer see evil. 
As long as the evil deed done does not bear fruit, the fool thinks it is 
like honey; but when it ripens, then the fool suffers grief." 

Therefore, "blessed is he that watcheth, and keepeth his 
garments, lest he walk [spiritually] naked, and they see his 
shame/' 

There is manuscript authority for both the singular and 
the plural form of the verb in verse 16, the singular form pre- 
dominating in the manuscripts. If the singular form is what 
should appear, then its implied subject is God, the sense being 
that He shall gather together the spiritually watchful to battle 
against the forces of evil. See verse 14, and also chapter 19, 
verses 17 and 19. If the plural form of the verb is correct, 
as recognized by the Revised Version, then its implied subject 
is "the spirits of devils working miracles", and the sense is a 
repetition of that of verse 14. 



NOTES BY THE READER 229 



230 NOTES BY THE READER 



XI : 14-18 SECTION III 231 



The Seventh Trumpet and the Seventh Vial 

Verses 14-17 (chapter 11). "The second woe is passed, and behold, 
the third woe comcth quickly. And the seventh Angel sounded, and 
there were great voices in heaven, saying, The kingdoms of this world 
are become the kingdoms of our Lord, and of his Christ, and he shall 
reign for ever and ever. And the four and twenty Elders which sat 
before God on their seats, fell upon their faces, and worshipped God, 
saying, We give thee thanks, O Lord God Almighty, which art, and 
wast, and art to come ; because thou hast taken to thee thy great power, 
and hast reigned." 

It seems the general policy of St. John, though not 
invariably so, to dramatize in each Act some special phase 
of the activity of the Christ-mind in the world, symbolizing 
the different phases of satanic activity with which it contends, 
and bringing the whole movement forward to an expression of 
victory for the Christ-activity at the close of the Act. So, in 
the instance now before us, the proclamation of the seventh 
Angel of the trumpeters is a proclamation of triumph and 
rejoicing, — which, however, is a "woe" to the dwellers in 
mortal sense. 

Verse 18 "And the nations were angry [should be translated, teem- 
ing with enthusiasm], and thy wrath ["ardor" is the correct sense] is 
come, and the time of the dead that they should be judged, and that 
thou shouldest give reward unto thy servants the Prophets, and to the 
Saints, and them that fear thy Name, small and great, and shouldest 
destroy them which destroy the earth." 

When the Greek orgisthasan is translated according to 
its derivative meaning, and as the context here plainly requires, 
it signifies that the nations were in a riot of enthusiasm, filled 
with love and joy; and orge indicates the divine ardor in 
mediatorial consciousness. See in this connection Note 4 of 
the Introduction, where the correct translation of orge, and of 
other words, from the same root, is fully discussed. The 
whole of verse 18, when correctly rendered, indicates that the 
rejoicing in heaven, depicted in verses 15-17, is shared on 
earth; in fact, verse 18 is a brief presentation of the arrival 



232 REVELATION INTERPRETED XI : 18 

of the millennial period more fully described at the commence- 
ment of chapter 20. In that chapter, it is indicated that a part 
of the dead are raised at the beginning of the millennial period 
and the remainder at its close, and that all Christ's faithful 
people enter into their reward, and that the power of God 
brings destruction on those activities of satan which had 
brought discord and destruction upon the earth during the 
whole period of satanic activity. 

Verse 19 of this chapter belongs at the commencement of 
Act 4. 



fXVI : 17-21) SECTION III 233 



The Seventh Vial 

(Chapter 16:17-21) 

Verse 17 "And the seventh Angel poured out his vial into the air, 
and there came a great voice out of the Temple of heaven, from the 
throne, saying, It is done." 

We have little to serve as a basis of judgment as to the 
proper interpretation of "air", at the end of the first clause; 
but, by comparison of this verse with the other verses in the 
chapter which represent the activities of the Angels, we are 
led to regard "the air 3 as symbolizing something in opposi- 
tion to the activity of the Angel. The preceding Angels have 
been represented as attacking phases of human nature, begin- 
ning with the lowest and working progressively upward toward 
those which are considered higher. Accordingly, "the air" 
may be taken to symbolize those activities of human mentality 
which the human mind considers spiritual, but which are not 
so in reality. It may perhaps denote false theology in its 
phases that seem higher, as "the great river Euphrates", the 
symbol of superstition, denotes the lower phases of false 
religion. One commentator says that "air" symbolizes "the 
invisible influences of evil". 

In order to interpret "It is done", we must bear in mind 
that the whole verse is written prophetically, looking into the 
distant future. In that distant perspective, it seems as if the 
activity of the Angel is no sooner commenced than the results 
thereof are accomplished, — just as all stars in the sky seem 
equally distant, though some are really much farther away 
than others. As a matter of fact, there is a great struggle and 
upheaval intervening between the time when mortal sense 
begins to feel the destructive effect of this Angel and the 
time when that destruction is complete; and this conflict 
and the results thereof are described in verses 18-21, as 
follows : 



234 REVELATION INTERPRETED (XVI : 18-21) 

"And there were voices and thunders, and lightnings: and there was 
a great earthquake, such as was not since men were upon the earth, 
so mighty an earthquake, and so great. And the great City was divided 
into three parts, and the Cities of the nations fell: and great Babylon 
came in remembrance before God, to give unto her the cup of the wine 
of the fierceness of his wrath. And every island fled away, and the 
mountains were not found. And there fell upon men a great hail out 
of heaven, every stone about the weight of a talent, and men blasphemed 
God, because of the plague of the hail: for the plague thereof zuas 
exceeding great." 

"Voices and thunders and lightnings' symbolize the Holy 
Spirit. 

"A great earthquake" symbolizes the upheaval resulting 
from the conflict between the Angel and satanic influences. 

"The great City" symbolizes mortal consciousness as a 
whole; and it is here represented as dismembered, "divided 
into three parts" . 

"And the cities of the nations (the worldly powers) fell" . 

"And great Babylon (Worldly Lust) came in remem- 
brance before (was brought under the full activity of) God, 
to give unto her the cup of the zuine of the fierceness of his 
wrath", — which last phrase is almost wholly a mistranslation, 
and should be rendered, to give unto her the draught of the 
wine of the ardor of his loving seal, — an activity which is 
destructive of evil, but is of a very different order from any 
mental activity connoted by the words "fierceness" or "wrath". 
For a full discussion of the proper translation of the Greek 
words t hum os and orge, see Note 4 of the Introduction. 

"And every island fled away, and the mountains were not 
found" ; that is, all human institutions which had seemed 
established and enduring will vanish away. 

For an interpretation of "the plague of the hail", and for 
a consideration of how this satanic activity could be occa- 
sioned by the activity of an Angel of God, the reader is 
referred to the interpretation of verse 7, of chapter 8, where 
the subject is fully discussed. 



(XVI : 17-21) SECTION III 235 

Then cometh the end of evil. "It is done" (verse 17) 
logically belongs at the end of verse 21. 

The interpretation of chapters 15 and 16, in one sense, 
belongs with the interpretation of the following chapters as 
far as the end of chapter 20, chapters 15-20 constituting the 
text of Act V ; but it has seemed better to interpret the activity 
of the Angels of the Vials coincidently with the activity of the 
Angels of the Trumpets, since, as previously indicated, they 
are the same Angels, — their activities being more effective at 
the last than at the first, because mortal consciousness is 
brought more directly subject to their action. 

The Angels of the Trumpets and Vials may be taken as 
symbolizing the apostolic activity of the Christ-mind. Each 
group begins its work with a pentecostal service, as did the 
immediate Apostles of Christ Jesus, and carries it forward 
until the final triumph over error. 



236 NOTES BY THE READER 



REVISED TRANSLATION AND SUGGEST- 
IVE PARAPHRASE 

SECTION III 
THE SOUNDING OF THE SEVEN TRUMPETS 

Chapter VIII. The Angels of the Trumpets 
Pentecostal Service 



Amended Revised 
Version 

2 And I saw the seven 
angels which stand be- 
fore God ; and there were 
given unto them seven 

3 trumpets. And another 
angel came and stood 
over the altar, having a 
golden censer ; and there 
was given unto him 
much incense, that he 
should give (add) it un- 
to the prayers of all the 
saints upon the golden 
altar which was before the 

4 throne. And the smoke 
of the incense, with the 
prayers of the saints, 
went up before God out 

5 of the angel's hand. And 
the angel taketh the cen- 
ser; and he filled it with 
the fire of the altar, and 
cast it upon the earth : 
and there followed 
thunders, and voices, and 
lightnings, and an earth- 
quake. 

6 And the seven angels 
which had the seven 
trumpets prepared them- 
selves to sound. 



Suggestive Paraphrase 
And I saw the seven militant mani- 
festations of infinite Mind, prepared to 
sound a message. And I beheld, as it 
were, a Pentecostal service at which 
these impersonal apostles, the angels of 
the trumpets, received the energizing of 
the Holy Spirit. And I saw the spirit- 
ual factor in human consciousness, in 
its activity as the true church, worship- 
ing God under the leadership of the 
Holy Spirit, and, as itself the Holy 
Spirit, assuming a militant attitude to- 
ward the world. And I saw that the 
Holy Spirit, the inspiration of Truth, 
will come as a purifying agent into 
human consciousness, and that there 
will follow a great contention between 
the powers of good and evil, and a great 
upheaval in human consciousness. 

And I saw the seven angels (The 
Christ-mind manifest as Spiritual Aspi- 
ration, Spiritual Reason, Executive 
Mind, Direct Cognition, Divine Love, 
Perception of Reality and Perception of 
Substance) ready to perform their offi- 
ces. 



Spiritual Aspiration vs. Materiality and Sensuality 

And as the human consciousness at- 
tains in part to the activity of Spiritual 
Aspiration, there will follow the puri- 
fying influences of punishment and of 

237 



7 And the first sounded, 
and there followed hail 
and fire, mingled with 
blood, and they were cast 
upon the earth : and the 



238 



REVELATION INTERPRETED VIII : 8-12 



Amended Revised 
Version 
third part of the earth 
was burnt up, and the 
third part of the trees 
was burnt up, and all the 
green grass was burnt 
up. 



Suggestive Paraphrase 
the Holy Spirit, and of the Christ Life, 
and materiality and sensuality, together 
with human institutions and the ordi- 
nary courses of human thought, will be 
in part destroyed. 



Spiritual Reason vs. Sensuousness and Psychism 



And the second angel 
sounded, and as it were 
a great mountain burn- 
ing with fire was cast 
into the sea : And the 
third part of the sea be- 
came blood ; and there 
died the third part of 
the creatures which were 
in the sea, even they 
that had life; and the 
third part of the ships 



And as human consciousness attains 
in part to the activity of Spiritual Rea- 
son, the effect upon sensuousness and 
psychism may be compared to casting a 
volcano in violent eruption into the sea : 
and, as a result, the sensuous element in 
human consciousness will be thrown into 
violent upheaval, and a large part of 
its activities will be destroyed ; and a 
large part of the human carriers or mes- 
sengers of Christ and of Satan will be 
slain. 



was destroyed 

Executive Mind vs. Human Emotions 



10 And the third angel 
sounded, and there fell 
from heaven a great 
star, burning as a torch, 
and it fell upon the third 
part of the rivers, and 
upon the fountains . of 

n the waters; and the name 
of . the star is called 
Wormwood : and the 
third part of the waters 
became wormwood ; and 
many men died of the 
waters, because they were 
made bitter. 



And as the human consciousness at- 
tains in part to the activity of Execu- 
tive Mind, the falsity and worthlessness 
of human emotion as compared with di- 
vine love will be exposed, and false, sen- 
timental human emotion will be remand- 
ed to its own realm of discord; it is 
really, in the long account, bitter as 
wormwood ; and a large part of human 
activity will become embittered; and 
many men will die as the result of the 
inharmonious activity of human sense. 
Spiritual Intuition vs. Worldly Wisdom 



12 And the fourth angel 
sounded, and the third 
part of the sun was smit- 
ten, and the third part 
of the moon, and the 
third part of the stars : 
that the third part of 
them should be darkened, 
and the day should not 
shine for the third part 
of it, and the night in 
like manner. 



And as the human consciousness at- 
tains to the activity of Spiritual Intu- 
ition, material sense, as satan, the beast 
(human will), and various satanic ideas, 
will be in part destroyed ; and the coun- 
terfeit or seeming good of material 
sense will be in part eliminated from 
human experience. 



VIII : 13-IX : 5 TEXT AND PARAPHRASE 



239 



The Holy Spirit Announces Further Woes for Wickedness 



Amended Revised 
Version 
13 And I saw, and I heard 
a lone (an) eagle, flying 
in mid-heaven, saying 
with a great voice, Woe. 
woe, woe, for them that 
dwell on the earth, by 
reason of the other 
voices of the trumpet of 
the three angels, who are 
yet to sound. 



Suggestive Paraphrase 
And the Holy Spirit, as the Spirit of 
Prophecy, pervading the mental realm, 
made known to me that mankind will 
suffer three other phases of woe because 
of judgments and punishments yet to be 
revealed. 



Chapter IX. The Angels of the Trumpets (Continued) 
Divine Love vs. Fleshly Desires 



And the fifth angel 
sounded, and I saw a 
star from heaven fall 
unto the earth : and there 
was given to him the key 
of the shaft (pit) of the 
abyss. And he opened 
the shaft (pit) of the 
abyss ; and there went 
up a smoke out of the 
shaft (pit), as the smoke 
of a great furnace ; and 
the sun and the air were 
darkened by reason of 
the smoke of the shaft 
(pit). And out of the 
smoke came forth lo- 
custs upon the earth, 
and power was given 
them, as the scorpions of 
the earth have power. 
And it was said unto 
them that they should 
not hurt the grass of the 
earth, neither any green 
thing, neither any tree, 
but only such men as 
have not the seal of God 
on their foreheads. And 
it was given them that 
they should not kill them 
but that they should be 
tormented five months : 
and their torment was as 



And as the human consciousness at- 
tains to the activity of divine Love, the 
belief of life and sensation in flesh will 
be cast down from the high places of 
human estimation and will hold sway 
only in the realm of lower sense, where 
it will prove a key to unlock the agen- 
cies of wickedness and torment. As- 
sertive error as a blinding smoke will 
proceed from the realm of nothingness, 
and will obscure the light of true under- 
standing. Out of this false belief there 
will spring a swarm of fleshly desires, 
which have power to inflict suffering on 
men as terrible as that which springs 
from the stings of scorpions. The at- 
tack of these fleshly desires is not di- 
rected primarily against the normal ac- 
tivities of human mentality, nor against 
any flourishing human institutions; but 
their attack is against those men of 
every class who have not been so 
"sealed" by God that they are invulner- 
able to fleshly desires. The primary ef- 
fect of these sinful desires is not to kill 
men outright, but to torture them with 
resulting diseases during the contim 



240 



REVELATION INTERPRETED 



IX : 6-14 



Amended Revised 
Version 
the torment of a scor- 
pion, when it striketh a 

6 man. And in those days 
men shall seek death, 
and shall in no wise find 
it ; and they shall desire 
to die, and death fleeth 

7 from them. And the 
shapes of the locusts were 
like unto horses prepared 
for war ; and upon their 
heads as it were crowns 
like unto gold, and then 
faces were as men's 

8 faces. And they had 
hair as the hair of 
women, and their teeth 
were as the teeth of 

9 lions. And they had 
breastplates, as it were 
breastplates of iron ; and 
the sound of their wings 
was as the sound of 
chariots, of many horses 

io rushing to war. And 
they have tails like unto 
scorpions, and stings ; 
and in their tails is their 
power to hurt men five 

ii months. They have over 
them as king the angel 
of the abyss : his name in 
Hebrew is Abaddon, and 
in the Greek tongue he 
hath the name of Apol- 

12 yon. The first Woe is 
past : behold, there come 
yet two Woes hereafter. 



Suggestive Paraphrase 
nance of satan-time : and the resulting 
pain is often as bad as that from the 
poison of a scorpion. Under the tor- 
ture of these diseases "shall men seek 
death, and shall not find it ; and shall 
desire to die, and death shall flee from 
them." And these sinful desires seem, 
in human experience, powerful and 
formidable as war horses ; and they 
seem to offer rewards precious as gold 
to those who entertain them, and they 
present an intelligent appearance. And 
they seem as beautiful as women, but 
they wound like lion's teeth. And they 
seem to be strongly protected from be- 
ing destroyed; and they are continually 
in evidence in great numbers and create 
great commotion. And the sting of 
these sinful desires and pleasures is in 
their after-effects ; and they torment 
men as long as men will entertain or 
yield to them. And the source and 
ruler of these sinful desires is he who 
has control of the realm of assertive er- 
ror, which has no foundation, who is 
called in the Hebrew language Abaddon, 
and in the Greek language Apollyon. 
One of the three woes mentioned be- 
fore (see 8:13) has been revealed; and 
two are yet to be revealed. 



Perception of Reality vs. Idolatry 



13 And the sixth angel 
sounded, and I heard 
a voice from the horns 
of the golden altar which 

14 is before God, one say- 
ing to the sixth angel, 
which had the trumpet, 
Loose the four angels 
which are bound at the 
great river Euphrates. 



And as the human consciousness at- 
tains in part the Perception of Reality, 
the Holy Spirit will give command to 
the Angel of Trust to loose the spirit- 
ual potencies in human consciousness 
from being held in obscurity and bond- 
age by the stream of superstition; and 
the spiritual factor in human conscious- 



IX : 15-21 



TEXT AND PARAPHRASE 



241 



Amended Revised 
Version 

15 And the four angels 
were loosed, which had 
been prepared for the 
hour and day and month 
and year, that they 
should kill the third part 

16 of men. And the num- 
ber of the armies of the 
horsemen was twice ten 
thousand times ten thou- 
sand : I heard the num- 

17 ber of them. And thus 
I saw the horses in the 
vision, and them that sat 
on them, having breast- 
plates as of fire and of 
smoky blue (hyacinth) 
and of brimstone : and 
the heads of the horses 
are as the heads of lions ; 
and out of their mouths 
proceedeth fire and 
smoke and brimstone. 

18 By these three plagues 
was the third part of 
men killed, by the fire and 
the smoke and brimstone, 
which proceeded out of 

19 their mouths. For the 
power of the horses is in 
their mouth, and in their 
tails : for their tails are 

-like unto serpents, and 
have heads ; and with 

20 them they do hurt. And 
the rest of mankind, 
which were not killed 
with these plagues, re- 
pented not of the works 
of their hands, that they 
should not worship dev- 
ils, and the idols of gold, 
and of silver, and of 
brass, and of stone, and 
of wood ; which can 
neither see, nor hear, nor 

21 walk; and they repented 
not of their murders, nor 
of their sorceries, nor of 
their fornication, nor of 
their thefts. 



Suggestive Paraphrase 
ness, being thus loosed, will become 
militant for instant or lengthened ser- 
vice, attacking false belief and causing 
it to react in mental upheavals which 
will prove very destructive to mankind. 
And the number of men acting as the 
agents of the Christ-mind, according to 
their understanding, against falsehood 
and unbelief will be myriads of myriads. 
And I saw that these militant Christians, 
intending to serve God, will present to 
all false beliefs a terrible and destruc- 
tive aspect. To speak figuratively, it 
will seem as if they are mounted on 
horses having breastplates of fire, 
smoke, and brimstone ; and it will seem 
as if the heads of the horses were heads 
of lions; and as if fire and smoke and 
burning sulphur were issuing out of 
their mouths. By the activities of the 
men nominally Christian, but using 
largely satanic methods, a large part of 
the heathen idolaters will be killed 
(while only a comparatively few will be 
converted to Christianity). It will seem 
to the heathen as if the activities of the 
Christians were doubly destructive, as 
of war horses having power not only in 
the mouths of their lions' heads, but also 
in tails like unto serpents, having heads, 
with which they can also sting and hurt. 
Nevertheless, the most of the heathen 
who are not killed in the missionary 
campaigns conducted by the Christians 
will continue in their idolatry: and will 
not repent of their deeds. 



242 



REVELATION INTERPRETED 



X:l-7 



Chapter X. John's Vision of the Full Truth 

A Revelation to John of the Principle and Application of Truth 

Amended Revised 
Version 
i And I saw another 
strong angel coming 
down out of heaven, ar- 
rayed with a cloud; and 
the rainbow was upon his 
head, and his face was as 
the sun, and his feet as 

2 pillars of fire ; and he 
had in his hand a little 
book open : and he set 
his right foot upon the 
sea, and his left upon the 

3 earth ; and he cried with 
a great voice, as a lion 
roareth : and when he 
cried, the seven thunders 

4 uttered their voices. And 
when the seven thunders 
uttered their voices, I 
was about to write : and 
I heard a voice from 
heaven saying. Seal up 
the things which the 
seven thunders uttered, 
and write them not. 



Suggestive Paraphrase 
And I rose to another great vision of 
the Christ, — a vision which seemed ob- 
scure at first; yet it promised much, and 
showed an aspect bright as the sun, and 
seemed founded on Truth and Love : and 
the vision, though important, was not 
lengthy, but the truth thus revealed has 
power to suppress both latent, hidden er- 
ror and the visible and audible forms 
which it has assumed. And I saw that 
when this higher vision of truth should 
be given to the world, the full measure 
of truth would be revealed, and would 
stir into redoubled activity all of the 
forces of evil, as it were in self-defense. 
And as I was about to write concerning 
these things in detail, it was revealed to 
me that this would be unwise at the time, 
but that I should keep the revelation to 
mvself. 



A Prophecy as to When the Revelation Shall Be Made Known 

to All 



5 And the angel which I saw stand- 
ing upon the sea and upon the earth 
lifted up his right hand to heaven, 

6 and sware by him that liveth unto the 
ages of the ages (for ever and ever), 
who created the heaven and the things 
that are therein, and the earth and 
the things that are therein, and the 
sea and the things that are therein, 
that there shall be delay no longer : 

7 but in the days of the voice of the 
seventh angel, when he is about to 
sound, then is finished the mystery of 
God, according to the good tidings 
which he declared to his servants the 
prophets. 



And it was revealed to me 
by the Christ, on the au- 
thority of the everlasting, 
creative Mind, that there 
shall be delay no longer 
than until the seventh or 
final vision of Truth, the 
perception of Spirit as the 
only substance, shall be 
given to the world, when all 
the things of God which 
have been hidden shall be' 
revealed and demonstrated, 
as has been declared by the 
prophets of God. 



X : 8-XI : 4 



TEXT AND PARAPHRASE 



243 



Effect of the Revelation on John 



Amended Revised Version 

8 And the voice which I heard from 
heaven, I heard it again speaking 
with me, and saying, Go, take the 
book which is open in the hand of the 
angel that standeth upon the sea and 

9 upon the earth. And I went unto the 
angel, saying unto him that he should 
give me the little book. And he saith 
unto me, Take it, and eat it up ; and it 
shall make thy belly bitter, but in thy 
mouth it shall be sweet as honey. 

io And I took the little book out of the 
angel's hand, and ate it up ; and it was 
in my mouth sweet as honey : and 
when I had eaten it, my belly was 

ii made bitter. And they say unto me, 
Thou must prophesy again in the face 
of (over) many peoples and nations 
and tongues and kings. 



Suggestive Paraphrase 
And I felt impelled to re- 
ceive, study and practice the 
brief but mighty revelation 
of Truth. And when I had 
done so, I found that the 
theoretical understanding of 
this truth, — my first sense of 
it, — was very inspiring and 
agreeable : But I found that 
the practice of it involved 
me in bitter struggles. And 
it was revealed to me that 
later I must speak forth the 
truth in the face of the wide 
circle of humanity. 



Chapter XL The Activity of the Holy Spirit 

The Full Truth as Principle, Enabling John to Separate Between 
Truth and Error in Human Consciousness 



And there was given 
me a reed like unto a 
rod : and one said, Rise, 
and measure the temple 
of God, and the altar, 
and them that worship 
therein. i\nd the court 
which is without the 
temple leave without, 
and measure it not; for 
it hath been given unto 
the nations : and the 
holy city shall they tread 
under foot forty and two 
months. 



_ And this vision gave unto me the Prin- 
ciple of absolute truth : and I felt im- 
pelled to use this Principle to make a 
mental measure or estimate (in order 
that I might understand aright) of the 
spiritual consciousness, and of the true 
method of worship, and of those who 
worship God correctly. And I saw that 
the mortal consciousness (outside the 
spiritual consciousness) cannot be meas- 
ured by this Principle ; for this mortal 
consciousness is given over to those who 
do not worship God in truth : and they 
shall treat the spiritual consciousness 
with contumely during the apparent 
ascendencv of satan. 



The Holy Spirit, Truth and Love, Is to Prophesy During Satan- 
time in a Subordinate Position in the World 

And during this period, the Holy 
Spirit, manifest as Truth and Love, will 
be active among men, though they will 
occupy a humble position in the midst of 
worldliness. As the bearers of the light 
of God to men, they may be likened to 
two candlesticks perpetually fed by the 



And I will give unto 
my two witnesses, and 
they shall prophesy a 
thousand two hundred 
and threescore days, 
clothed in sackcloth. 
These are the two olive 



244 



REVELATION INTERPRETED XI : 5-10 



Amended Version 
trees and the two candle- 
sticks, standing before 
the Lord of the earth. 

5 And if any man desireth 
to hurt them, fire pro- 
ceedeth out of their 
mouth, and devoureth 
their enemies : and if 
any man shall desire to 
hurt them, in this man- 
ner must he be killed. 

6 These have the power to 
shut the heaven, that it 
rain not during the days 
of their prophecy: and 
they have power over the 
waters to turn them into 
blood, and to smite the 
earth with every plague 
as often as they shall de- 

7 sire. And whenever they 
shall perform their wit- 
nessing (when they shall 
have finished their testi- 
mony), the beast that 
cometh up out of the 
abyss shall make war 
with them, and overcome 

8 them, and kill them. And 
their dead body (bodies) 
lies in the street of the 
great city, which spirit- 
ually is called Sodom, 
and Egypt, where also 
their Lord was crucified. 

9 And from among the 
peoples and tribes and 
tongues and nations do 
men look upon their dead 
body (bodies) three days 
and a half, and suffer 
not their dead bodies* to 

io be laid in a tomb. And 
they that dwell on the 
earth rejoice over them, 
and make merry; and 
they shall send gifts one 
to another ; because these 
two prophets tormented 
them that dwell on the 
earth. 



Suggestive Paraphrase 
oil of two olive trees. And if any man 
tries to hurt Truth and Love, he has 
only error with which to do so, and this 
error they destroy when it comes in con- 
flict with them: and if any man per- 
sistently attacks the Holy Spirit with a 
given error, he is thrown back to have 
his mortal life destroyed by that same 
error. Harmony is included within the 
life of obedience to Truth and Love, and 
while these witnesses are held in a 
subordinate position by men, men are ex- 
cluded from harmony: and because of 
this, mankind (See chap. 17:15) will be 
engaged in bloody wars, and smitten 
with plagues, as long and as often as 
men neglect these witnesses. And while 
they are giving their testimony in a posi- 
tion subordinate to worldliness, enraged 
evil will use the forces of human gov- 
ernment (See interpretation of chap. 13), 
and will seem to suppress them entirely 
in the realm of human activity. And 
the churches and institutions which have 
embodied Truth and Love in the world 
will seem to lie dead before the dwellers 
in sense testimony, whose mental habita- 
tion is typified by Sodom and Egypt, in 
which wicked mental realm the cruci- 
fixion of our Lord was conceived and 
executed. And the dwellers in mortal 
sense will treat the lifeless human in- 
stitutions of Truth and Love with con- 
tumely during the apparent ascendency 
of satan. And the wicked will make 
merry at the apparent suppression of 
these witnesses and their human embodi- 
ments, which had been very troublesome 
to the wicked. 



* The dead bodies not buried may signify a condition of lack of religious life 
among men typified by closed and dilapidated churches. 



XI : 11-17 



TEXT AND PARAPHRASE 



245 



At the End of Satan-time, the Holy Spirit Gains the Ascendency 



Amended Revised 
Version 
ii And after the three 
days and a half, the 
breath of life from God 
entered into them, and 
they stood upon their 
feet; and great fear fell 
upon them which beheld 

12 them. And they heard a 
great voice from heaven 
saying unto them, Come 
up hither. And they went 
into heaven in the cloud ; 
and their enemies beheld 

13 them. And that hour 
there was a great earth- 
quake, and the tenth part 
of the city fell; and there 
were killed in the earth- 
quake names of m e n 
seven thousand (seven 
thousand persons) : and 
the rest were affrighted, 
and gave glory to the 
God of heaven. 

14 The second Woe is 
past: behold the third 

Woe cometh quickly. 



Suggestive Paraphrase 
And at the end of satan-time, the 
Spirit of life from God will enter into 
the human institutions representing these 
witnesses, and they will begin to flourish 
again ; and great fear will fall upon 
those who had supposed them dead. And 
these witnesses will be called to occupy 
high places, and places of great power. 
And their enemies, beholding them, will 
be struck with consternation, though 
they will be so clouded or obscured to 
mortal sense that their enemies cannot 
understand them. And at the same time 
there will be a great upheaval, and a 
large part of the power of mortal belief 
will be overthrown, and in the upheaval 
the mortal natures of the spiritual con- 
querors will be destroyed, and those not 
regenerated will be affrighted and will 
acknowledge the power of God. 

The second of the woes has been re- 
vealed, and the revelation of the third 
cometh quickly. 



The Seventh Trumpet, Proclaiming the Millennium 



15 And the seventh angel 
sounded ; and there followed 
great voices in heaven, and 
they said, The kingdom of 
the world is become the 
kingdom of our Lord, and 
of his Christ : and he shall 
reign unto the ages of the 
ages (for ever and ever). 

16 And the four and twenty 
elders, which sit before God 
on their thrones, fell upon 
their faces, and worshipped 

17 God, saying, We give thee 
thanks, O Lord God, the 
Almighty, which art and 
which wast ; because thou 
hast taken thy great power, 



And when the human consciousness 
shall attain unto the perception of 
Spirit as substance, there will be a 
mighty energizing of Truth in the 
spiritualized h u m a n consciousness, 
declaring, The kingdom of the world 
is become the kingdom of our Lord, 
and of His Christ: and he shall reign 
unto the ages of the ages. And all 
spiritual consciousness will humble it- 
self before God, saying, We give thee 
thanks, almighty and everlasting God, 
because through thy power evil is 
overcome, and thou alone shalt reign. 



246 



REVELATION INTERPRETED 



XI :18 



Amended Revised Version 
18 and didst reign. And the 
nations were teeming with 
enthusiasm (wroth), and 
thy ardor (wrath) came, 
and the time of the dead to 
be judged, and the time to 
give their reward to thy 
servants the prophets, and 
to the saints, and to them 
that fear thy name, the 
small and the great; and to 
destroy them that destroy 
the earth. 



Suggestive Paraphrase 
And the nations will be teeming with 
holy enthusiasm, and the ardor of 
God's love will be manifest and the 
dead will be resurrected and cleansed 
from evil, and God will give reward 
to all His servants, and will destroy 
all agencies which render material 
sense discordant and destructive. 



(Continued on Page 307.) 



NOTES BY THE READER 247 



248 NOTES BY THE READER 



SECTION IV 

THE WOMAN, THE DRAGON, AND THE 

BEASTS 

(Chapter 11:19 — 13:18) 

Verse 19, Chapter 11. "And the Temple of God was opened in 
heaven, and there was seen in his Temple the Ark of his Testament, 
and there mere lightnings, and voices, and thunderings, and an earth- 
quake, and great hail." 

This is equivalent to saying : And I became spiritually con- 
scious, and in spiritual consciousness I beheld the ultimate 
safety (the ark) which is made known through the testimony 
of God ; but I also saw the activity of the Holy Spirit, as sym- 
bolized by "lightnings, and voices, and thunderings", the 
activity of satan as figured by "great hail", and the upheaval 
resulting from the conflict as represented by "an earthquake." 
Thus does John forecast an additional phase of the struggle 
between truth and error, good and evil, from which struggle 
there is ultimate salvation. 

CHAPTER XII 

The Battle of the Christ-mind and of Satan for the Conquest and 
Allegiance of the Human Understanding 

Verse 1 "And there appeared a great wonder in heaven; a woman 
clothed with the sun, and the moon under her feet, and upon her head 
a crown of twelve stars." 

The first clause of this verse is equivalent to John's say- 
ing: I became conscious of another great revelation, symbol- 
ized to me as "a woman clothed with the sun" , etc. 

The "woman" symbolizes the Christ-idea, 'generic man, the 
spiritual idea of God ; she illustrates the coincidence of God 
and man as the divine Principle and divine idea" (S. & H., 
561:22). Although the woman represents the Christ-idea, 

249 



250 REVELATION INTERPRETED XII : 1-3 

she represents that idea considered more especially in its 
feminine phase. "As Elias presented the idea of the father- 
hood of God, which Jesus afterward manifested, so the Reve- 
lator completed this figure with woman, typifying the spiritual 
idea of God's motherhood" (S. & H., 562:3-7). The feminine 
element or representative of Mind is divine Love. From the 
standpoint of human experience love is the mother of truth. 
Human beings are ignorant of truth until they learn it. Before 
they can learn truth, they must desire it ; that is, love it, and 
obey so much of it as they have already become acquainted 
with. "He that doeth the will of my Father, he shall know of 
the doctrine, whether it be of God". So, speaking from the 
human standpoint, St. John represents the Christ-idea as a 
woman, as a mother, ushering truth into the mental life of 
humanity, the realm of understanding, "heaven." 

This woman is represented as clothed with the sun, moon, 
and stars ; that is, she is clothed with all known forms of light. 

In the figure, the light is material, just as the woman is; 
but a spiritual idea and spiritual light, the light of understand- 
ing and of love, are symbolized. Specifically, the sun prob- 
ably represents God, divine Mind ; the moon, the Christ-con- 
sciousness, or spiritual creation ; while the twelve stars rep- 
resent all right ideas, specifically the twelve tribes of Israel or 
the twelve Apostles of the Lamb, or both. 

Verse 2 "And she being zvith child, cried, travailing in birth and 
pained to be delivered." 

4 
Those authors who write under inspiration can readily 
appreciate what is here spoken of. A line of thought develops 
in consciousness, and then one cannot rest or sleep until it is 
expressed on paper, or at least in speech. 

Verse 3 "And there appeared another wonder in heaven; and be- 
hold a great red dragon, having seven heads and ten horns, and seven 
croivns upon his head." 



XII: 4 SECTION IV 251 

"Heaven" here indicates, as it often does in Revelation, the 
realm of John's personal consciousness, the realm of his human 
understanding, wherein the forces of both good and evil are 
discernible. The phrase : "There appeared . . . in 
heaven 3 is equivalent to, I became conscious of. The dragon 
could not appear in the consciousness of absolute good or har- 
mony. The dragon is spoken of as "red", the color of blood 
and of fire, and the emblem of cruelty and murder. The 
"seven heads" of the dragon may represent the seven forms 
of evil opposed to the seven manifestations or "seven Spirits" 
of God (i 14) : namely, matter opposed to Spirit; mortal mind 
opposed to divine Mind; discord opposed to Principle ; phys- 
ical sense opposed to Soid; error opposed to Truth; death 
opposed to Life ; and hate opposed to Love. The "ten horns' 
may represent the claim of evil to ten phases of power by which 
it can break the Ten Commandments. The "seven crowns" 
are emblems of authority. It is interesting to note that here 
the crowns are seven, and are upon the heads of the dragon, 
while in the case of the beast of chapter 13, verse 1, the crowns 
are ten, and are upon the horns. This probably indicates that 
the authority of the dragon is seemingly more absolute and 
settled and fundamental than that of the beast. It is well to 
note that this figure of the dragon is a symbol rather than an 
image, since it is almost impossible to picture by the imagina- 
tion how ten horns could be distributed on seven heads, and 
still have those heads crowned. 

Verse 4 "And his tail drew the third part of the stars of heaven, 
and did cast them to the earth, and the dragon stood before the zvoman 
which was ready to be delivered, for to devour her child as soon as it 
was born." 

The dragon suggests to us an animal of the crocodile or 
alligator order. The tail of such animals is a seat of great 
power and is their chief fighting weapon. So the power of 
this dragon to seduce men is represented as located in his tail. 
The dragon is, of course, the whole body of false belief, gen- 



252 REVELATION INTERPRETED XII : 5 

eral mortal mind acting as a unit, "the devil and satan" , as 
John himself declares in verse 9 of this chapter. The "stars 
of heaven' are those who have attained repute for learning 
and wisdom, and have been regarded as "leading lights" or 
authorities among men. The symbol may connote both 
atheistic or materialistic scientists and philosophers, and still 
others who are professors of Christianity. Though all these 
may be for a time sincere in their beliefs and teachings, the 
devil is represented as deceiving and seducing a large part of 
them, drawing them into the service of their lower natures, 
and thus "casting them to the earth", — that is, into materiality, 
sensuality, and wickedness. The devil will continue to do this 
during the period of apparent satanic ascendency. 

Perceiving that the love of Truth, the woman, the spiritual 
church, would bring the truth into the human consciousness, 
the dragon is represented as making ready to devour the truth 
as soon as born into the realm of consciousness, to prevent its 
growing and becoming spread abroad in the world ; but he is 
prevented from doing this, as we shall see. 

Verse 5 "And she brought forth a man-child, who was to rule all 
nations with a rod of iron: and her child zvas caught up unto God, and 
his throne/' 

The love of truth (see 2 Thes. 2:10), the woman clothed 
with the sun, was a spirit widely prevalent in the mental realm, 
in the realm of humanity, before the birth of Jesus, and this 
love of truth became centered or focused in Mary, and 
enabled her to conceive of the Holy Ghost, and she brought 
forth a man-child in the person of Jesus of Nazareth, who was 
the truth incarnate, and who was to reveal that truth which 
was afterward to rule all nations with a rod of iron (with an 
inflexible rule of truth and good), even after the human Jesus 
had passed away.* This man-child, this incarnate Christ, was 

* Mr. F. L. Rawson has written, on page 138 of "Life Understood," 
the following : "The pure Virgin birth resulted in purity. Prof. Huxley 



XII : 5 SECTION IV 253 



not so much the child of Mary as he was of the "woman", of 
the impersonal love of truth which had prevailed for cen- 
turies, which was focused in Mary and of which she was the 
mere instrument, becoming the agent of this spiritual "woman" 
through her own spirituality and receptiveness. Had 'there not 
been vastly more love of truth in the mental realm than Mary 
could have developed of herself, the miracle of conceiving 
from the Holy Ghost could not have been accomplished. In 
like manner, probably no great revelation of truth or good 
has ever been brought to the world which was not more the 
child of the "spirit of the time" in which it was born than it 
was of the human person through whom it attained visible 
manifestation. It is fortunate that this is the case ; for such a 
child ushered into the world as the result of the labors of a 
single person, before the mentality of the age was ready to be 
the real parent of the child and to co-operate in the care of its 
infancy, — a child thus born, if it were possible, would be born 
out of time, and would be destroyed. This was nearly the case 
with the child of the spiritual "woman" and of Mary. Herod 
sought to put him to death before he could give his message 
to the world ; and in this attempt Herod was but the agent of 
satan, as Mary was the agent of the spiritual idea in giving 
the child birth. Even after Jesus had grown up and had 
commenced his ministry, the world-spirit of evil several 
times tried to put him to death before he had accomplished 
his ministry. 

The Christ was incarnate in Jesus, and he was therefore 
able to reveal and demonstrate the saving truth to the world, 
but Jesus did not remain in the world. Having demonstrated 
the ascension, he was "caught up unto God and his throne" 
(verse 5). The pure spiritual truth, the Christ-truth which 



has said that 'the Virgin birth presented no difficulty to him, as virgin 
conception was a fact of nature; Medical men have found that this- is 
possible. We know now that the expectant thinking of millions over a 
series of years as to the time of the Messiah must have had a great 
effect." 



254 REVELATION INTERPRETED XII : 6 

he taught, remained militant in the world and among men for 
a couple of centuries, and then the dragon largely overcame it, 
so far as the world is concerned, and this truth was seemingly, 
i. e.j historically, " caught up unto God and to his throne" for 
preservation, though ever-present in the hearts of the com- 
paratively small number of true believers, until such time as 
the dragon should be largely subdued, partly as the result of 
the activity of so much of the truth as men did retain, and 
partly as the result of the tendency of evil to destroy itself, — 
after which the truth would reappear in the visible world of 
men and become militant again, as it has undoubtedly done in 
the Christian Science movement. 

Verse 6 "And the woman fled into the wilderness, where she hath 
a place prepared of God, that they should feed her there a thousand 
two hundred and three score days." 

Coincidently with the disappearing of pure spiritual truth 
from the activities of the visible world, the love of pure truth, 
divine love, the "woman", disappeared, for the most part, from 
the world of men. Such sense of truth and love as they had 
was adulterated, after the second or third century, with belief 
in material powers, love thereof, and with reliance upon mate- 
rial means for healing the sick, etc. When Jesus, near the 
commencement of his ministry, was not active in the visible 
world, preaching and healing, but was absent from the stage 
of active affairs for a period of forty days, he was spoken of 
as being " in the wilderness." There is no probability that he 
was in an unpopulated place during this period, but he was 
simply "withdrawn from the world", withdrawn from material 
sense into spiritual sense. Likewise this "woman", this spirit 
of divine love, is represented as being "withdrawn from the 
world", and so "in the wilderness" from the standpoint of the 
world's activity, for "a thousand two hundred and threescore 
days" As before mentioned in these Notes, this is the period 
or length of time repeatedly spoken of by St. John as the 



XII : 7-12 SECTION IV 255 

period during which the dragon, or evil, is to have marked 
and undoubted ascendency in the mental realm and in the 
world, so far as men are concerned.* 

Verses 7-12 "And there zvas war in heaven: Michael and his angels 
fought against the dragon; and the dragon fought, and his angels, and 
prevailed not; neither zvas their place found any more in heaven. And 
the great dragon was cast out, that old serpent, called the Devil, and 
Satan, which deceiveth the zvhole world: he zvas cast into the earth, 
and his angels were cast out with him. And I heard a loud voice say- 
ing in heaven, Now is come salvation, and strength, and the Kingdom 
of our God and the power of his Christ: for the accuser of our brethren 
is cast dozvn, which accused them before our God day and night. And 
they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb, and by the word of their 
testimony; and they loved not their lives unto the death. Therefore, re- 
joice, ye heavens, and ye that dzvell in them. Woe to the inhabitants 
of the earth and of the sea! for the devil is come down unto you, hav- 
ing great wrath, because he knozveth that he hath but a short time." 

During the time that the man-child is "caught up unto God 
and to his throne" for protection, and while the woman is 
"in the wilderness' for protection, there is war in the realm of 
human understanding, where the search for truth and reality 
goes on. The dragon tries to devour the man-child, the new 
understanding of truth born into human consciousness, but 



* It is interesting to note that one Bible commentator has described 
this period as a period of 1,260 "years" lasting "from A. D. 606, when 
the Pope of Rome was, by Phocus the Emperor, constituted the uni- 
versal Bishop of the Christian church, to A. D. 1866" (The Self In- 
terpreting Bible.) This commentator does not call attention to the 
fact, and probably did not know, that 1866 was the date when Mrs. 
Eddy discovered Christian Science, that reappearance of pure spiritual 
truth in the world, which undoubtedly presages the early fall of the 
dragon and of all those human institutions, organizations, and forms of 
government which derive their power largely from the dragon. Coin- 
cidently with the reappearing of the pure spiritual truth among men, 
the "woman," the love of pure truth, divine love, comes out of the 
wilderness, out of the "place prepared of God" for her temporary pro- 
tection, and becomes active again on the stage of human affairs. 



256 REVELATION INTERPRETED XII: 7-12 

Michael, the militant Christ, and the faithful in heaven take 
up spiritual arms against the dragon, being resisted by the 
dragon and those agencies favorable to him. The result is 
that the dragon and his angels lose their hold upon human 
understanding; that is, the human mind gradually comes to 
know that the satanic presentations of matter and evil as 
realities of being are not true. The falsity, and consequent 
nothingness, of satan and the satanic ideas is recognized, at 
last, by humanity. In proportion as this happens, the devil 
can work among men only so far as he can tempt them through 
their lower natures, against their understanding. Thus is the 
dragon "cast into the earth", as the only field for his activity. 
His power to tempt men against their understanding, — that is, 
when they know that they are being deceived, is immeasur- 
ably less than his power to tempt them while they believe his 
deceiving presentations in consciousness to be truth. By the 
conquest of the human understanding (heaven), satan is shorn 
of most of his seeming power, and his complete destruction 
is a question of but (( a short time". The Holy Spirit is heard 
as u a loud voice in heaven" celebrating the victory, and ex- 
horting the spiritually minded to rejoice, and pronouncing 
"woe" to the dwellers in material sense. Satan can no longer 
work, or maintain a hold, in the higher activities of human 
consciousness, but can only work among the lower propensities 
of men, where it is represented that he will be doubly active 
for "a short time" because of rage at being cast out of the 
higher realm of activity. Consequently, the men whose 
thought is upon lower levels come in for an unusual share of 
satanic temptation and discord. 

The name Michael (verse 7) means in Hebrew, Who is like 
unto God? On page 566 of Science and Health, we read: 
"Michael's characteristic is spiritual strength. He leads the 
hosts of heaven against the power of sin, satan, and fights 
the holy wars. Gabriel has the more quiet task of imparting 
a sense of the ever presence of ministering Love." Michael 
may be thus regarded as the militant Christ. 



XII : 10-13 SECTION IV 257 

Verse 10 "Which accused them before our God day and night." 

Satan, false sense, is constantly declaring that man is more 
or less sinful, more or less imperfect, temporal, finite, and mate- 
rial, — none of which accusations are true ; for man is the 
image, the continuous expression of his perfect Creator, and 
is therefore perfect. To prove this, is to overcome satan, and 
to work out our salvation ; it is to "put on Christ." 

In verses 1-6 of this chapter, St. John represents the con- 
flict between truth and error as discerned in the realm of 
human understanding where the knowledge of truth and 
reality is sought. In verses 7-12, he represents satan, the 
belief in matter and evil as realities, as losing in the contest for 
a hold upon the understanding of men. Christ, the revelation 
of Spirit, of good, as the only reality, is completely vic- 
torious, and, theoretically, the unreality, the nothingness of 
satan, and of all his agencies and activities, is seen. In verses 
13-17, the activity of satan in the lower realms of human 
nature, and the relations of such activity to the higher mental 
forces at work, is symbolically described. The movements 
indicated in these three groups of verses (1-6, 7-12, 13-17) 
are not to be considered as succeeding each other, but as coin- 
cident, — that is, they are all going on at the same time, and 
cover the period represented by a "thousand two hundred and 
threescore days" (verse 6) and "a time, and times, and half a 
time" (verse 14), the whole period of apparent satanic activity 
in the world. 

Verse 13 "And when the dragon saw that he zvas cast unto the 
earth, he persecuted the woman which brought forth the man-child." 

The lower activities in human nature, and those men pre- 
dominantly subservient to them,' are now turned in conflict 
against the higher activities, against the love of truth, sym- 
bolized by the "'woman", and against those men serving the 
Christ-mind. 



258 REVELATION INTERPRETED xil : 14-16 

Verse 14 "And to the zvonicm zvere given two zvings of a great eagle, 
that she might flee into the wilderness into her place, zvhere she is nour- 
ished for a time, and times, and half a time, from the face of the ser- 
pent." 

"A great Eagle' symbolizes the Holy Spirit, the two wings 
of which in human consciousness are the realization of truth 
and love. By this realization, the spiritual factor in human 
consciousness is lifted above or removed apart from the rat- 
ings of material sense, and is nourished with "bread from 
heaven" until the apparent reign and activity of satan are 
finished. 

Verses 15, 16 "And the serpent cast out of his mouth zvater as a 
flood after the zuoman; that he might cause her to be carried azvay of 
the flood. And the earth helped the zvoman, and the earth opened her 
mouth, and szvallowed up the flood which the dragon cast out of his 
mouth." 

In verse 15, chapter 17, St. John tells us what he means, 
sometimes at least, by "water", or "waters", — namely, "peo- 
ples, and multitudes, and nations, and tongues." The "ser- 
pent" is defined as "satan." The "zvoman' here symbolizes 
the true church (compare verse 1 of the 2nd Epistle of John). 
Hence, when we are prophetically told that "the serpent cast 
out of his mouth water as a flood after the woman, that he 
might cause her to be carried away of the flood," we may 
understand that satan will try to overwhelm the true spiritual 
church among men by stirring up against it the wicked activ- 
ities of a vast number of ungodly men. But in verse 16 we are 
given to understand that satan characteristically overreaches 
himself. Some of these ungodly men will fight among them- 
selves, and many of them will be thus slain. Furthermore, 
the satanic activity of the lower nature begets disease and 
suffering, thus weakening the apparent power of those who 
are opposed to righteousness, and even driving them to turn 
to the Christ-mind for relief. Again, rabid resistance to 
truth has always overreached itself and begotten that protest 



XII : 14-16 SECTION IV 259 

in general thought which is being expressed today in the criti- 
cisms by non-religious writers of professed Christians who 
are hurling their shafts at those whom they deem unorthodox. 
Thus the attack of assertive evil upon the godly is largely 
neutralized. These are ways in which "the earth", symboliz- 
ing the lower elements in human nature and crude "common 
sense", may be said to prove a virtual help to "the woman" 
in resisting the attack of satan, since thus "the earth opens her 
mouth and swallows up the flood which the dragon casts out 
of his mouth." 

On page 570 of "Science and Health" Mrs. Eddy suggests 
another way in which "the earth helps the woman", in the 
following note: 

"The march of mind and of honest investigation will bring 
the hour, when the people will chain, with fetters of some sort, 
the growing occultism of this period. The present apathy as 
to the tendency of certain active yet unseen mental agencies 
will finally be shocked into another extreme mortal mood, — 
into human indignation ; for one extreme follows another." 

In the same line of thought, Mr. J. S. Hughes writes as 
follows : "Worldly people who in any way help to destroy 
ignorance or to destroy degrading superstition or otherwise do 
good, while they may not choose the better part for themselves, 
may upon a lower plane help this world into better conditions, 
and so hasten the reign of the rightful king and prince of the 
earth." 

Mr. F. L. Rawson presents a very lucid interpretation of 
these verses by suggesting that the natural scientists of the 
present day, through teaching the unreality and destructibility 
of matter and the harm done by hypnotic practices, are helping 
the spiritual church, by showing the people that its doctrines, 
in the denial of matter, etc., are true, thus showing the falsity 
of the flood of materialistic teachings and the falsity of mental 
practice using the carnal mind. 

Though materialistic in his order of thought, Robert G. 
Ingersoll, in his work of destroying superstition and clearing 
away blind and undiscriminating reverence for the Bible and 



260 REVELATION INTERPRETED XII : 17 

the church, may be regarded as an example of the earth help- 
ing the woman. He did much to prepare the way for the 
spiritualization of human thought, the establishment of the 
true church. 

In the highest sense, the true church is made up of the 
unorganized body of true believers, some of which can be 
found in every organized church, and some of which belong to 
no organized church or denomination. The characteristic of 
these true believers has always been their absolute loyalty in 
thought, and in conduct so far as possible, to God, Spirit, as 
the only power. They have refused to "live after the flesh", 
and to substitute matter in any form, or mortal mind in any 
form, or civil or ecclesiastical government in any form, for 
God as the object of their allegiance and obedience. It was 
this pure spiritual consciousness which brought the man-child, 
Christ Jesus, and his revelation to the world, and it was this 
pure spiritual consciousness, incarnate in the unorganized 
church above spoken of, which gave pure Christianity a start 
in the world, and which kept in the world such remnant of 
pure Christianity as there was during the centuries known as 
"the dark ages" ; and it was this spiritual consciousness, incar- 
nate as above mentioned, against which satan, in his diabolical 
work on earth, commenced to make war in the first centuries 
of the Christian era. Satan practically drove this true church, 
this woman, off the stage of active affairs during the first few 
centuries ; but to the true church was given the Holy Spirit 
with its two wings, truth and love, by which it succeeded in 
escaping the deadly attack of satan, and in withdrawing from 
the stage of active affairs "into the wilderness", where it was 
taken care of and nourished, through its loyalty to truth and 
love, during the ascendency of "the dragon" , spoken of in 
this chapter, and of "the beast" described in the next chapter. 

Verse iy "And the dragon zvas wroth with the woman, and zvent 
to make war with the remnant of her seed, which keep the command- 
ments of God, and have the testimony of Jesus Christ." 



XII : 17 SECTION IV 261 

The phrase "the remnant of her seed" shows that the true 
church, during the period of satanic ascendency, is small in 
numbers and unorganized. This verse as a whole serves as a 
sort of final brief introduction to the chapters which imme- 
diately follow. 

All modern authorities are agreed that what is given as 
the first clause of the first verse of chapter 13 ("And I stood 
upon the sand of the sea") should be attached to verse 17 of 
chapter 12, and should be translated: "and he stood upon the 
sand of the sea". That is, satan is represented as standing at 
the dividing line between ''the sea" and "the earth", or the 
land, — meaning that he takes a position in the midst of all the 
lower activities of human nature, "whose host of desires, pas- 
sions, and longings is indeed as the sand of the sea." 



262 NOTES BY THE READER 



XIII SECTION IV 263 

CHAPTER XIII 

The Two Beasts, the False Claimants of Authority in State and 
Church, and the Sin of Worshiping Human Organi- 
zations, Civil or Ecclesiastical 

Judging from his own experience, the author believes that 
the average reader of the Apocalypse is not prepared, without 
some special study and consideration of human government 
in church and state, to see and appreciate the teaching that is 
symbolized by the two "wild beasts'' of chapter 13. 

At any stage of human progress thus far reached, human 
government, both civil and ecclesiastical, has been and is a 
necessity. Absence from it, thus far, would mean, not the 
realization of divine government which is the ideal and only 
absolutely right and perfect government, but would mean the 
anarchy of satan. However, human government, at its best, is 
far from being entitled to be regarded as synonymous with 
divine or perfect government. At its best, it is a mere make- 
shift, an expedient, a concession to human immaturity. At its 
worst it is the summation of all that is corrupt, materialistic, 
lust-producing, tyrannical, and misleading in doctrine and 
practice.* 

Different human governments and organizations, especially 
the ecclesiastical, are apt to start at as high a level as the con- 
ditions of society in which they spring up permit, but history 
bears witness, that, almost invariably, if not quite so, they have 
shown strong tendencies to gravitate toward the lowest level 
that the conditions of society in which they existed permitted. 
Many, of them have stopped short of going the whole distance, 
but the tendency has always been downward, rather than 
upward, for all such organizations, as they have grown in 

* In this connection the author would recommend the reading of Judge 
Lindsay's book, entitled "The Beast." showing conditions of human 
government which existed in Denver, Colo., and which still exist there, 
and in every other large city, to a great extent, bearing out all that 
is said above about human government at its worst. 



264 REVELATION INTERPRETED XIII 

years. Accordingly, it is folly, and always has been, for people 
to regard the voice of any human organization to which they 
may have belonged as necessarily synonymous with the voice 
of God upon points of doctrine and conduct. The government 
or organization is often, and in many cases usually, right in its 
teachings and demands ; nevertheless, it is always the religious 
duty of each and every person under any form of human 
government to avoid regarding the government or organization 
without reservations. If he looks upon it with unbounded 
confidence, he places, so far as he is concerned, that which is 
human, and in part of the earth earthy, in the place of God. 
This is to be guilty of idolatry and blasphemy. Human gov- 
ernments and organizations are necessarily established by 
human beings, and administered by human beings, and human 
beings are not yet divine ; and, manifestly, a fountain cannot 
rise higher than its source. Hence, human governments and 
organizations, unless at their very start, are apt to impede 
rather than assist the mental, moral, and spiritual growth of 
the better class of people under them, and are apt to fall short 
of placing as high ideals as they should before the people. 
Some of the special points of danger to individuals from 
human governments and organizations may be succinctly 
stated : 

1. Human governments and organizations are apt to be 
regarded by many of the people under them with unreserved 
love and confidence ; and those in authority are apt to do all 
they can to foster this spirit among the people. For instance, 
the distinct claim of the Roman Catholic church for the Pope 
as head of the church is, that he is "in the place of God." This 
is to fail to discriminate between the human and the divine, 
and, as before pointed out, it tends to encourage idolatry. 

2. Human governments and organizations often lose the 
affection and confidence of those under them, and come to be 
regarded with fear by many ; and they tend to foster this spirit 
of fear on the part of those who do not agree with them. In 
so far as the organization occasions itself to be feared at 



XIII SECTION IV 265 

times when members have no sense of having been disobedient 
to God, it is a hindrance and a menace to the spiritual growth 
of those under it. 

3. Human governments and organizations almost invari- 
ably are a check upon the mental and spiritual progress of the 
more advanced of those under them. Especially is this true 
of ecclesiastical organizations. They tend to crystallize the 
advancement of spiritual knowledge and liberty of conscience 
at a certain level, and to virtually say to those under them: 
"Beware of daring to think and to express any thoughts 
beyond what the organization has pronounced canonical and 
authentic; and especially, beware of daring to express any 
ideas in opposition to those considered orthodox by the 
organization. If you presume to do these things, you will be 
regarded with disfavor, and you may be expelled for heresy." 

4. Wherever there are human governments or organiza- 
tions, there must always be those in official places. These must 
usually have much to do with appointing those who are to 
fill lower official places. They can scarcely be expected to 
appoint or use their influence for those with whom they are 
not acquainted, or those whose ideas do not largely agree with 
their own. This inevitably begets a tendency on the part of 
many members of the organization to cultivate the acquaint- 
ance, and in various ways to gain the favor of those in author- 
ity. This is very apt to grow into a system of unworthy and 
degrading "politics" within the organization, be it of church 
or of state. 

5. Those in authority are given power to punish and to 
discipline, the intention being that such power shall be used 
only upon those who deserve punishment and discipline in 
the sight of God. But innumerable times, in the history of both 
states and churches, the power of those in authority has been 
used to thwart, hinder, cast into disfavor, ruin, and even kill, 
men and women who have been personal enemies of those in 
authority, or have refused to favor their schemes for advance- 
ment, or have ventured to disagree with those in authority 



266 REVELATION INTERPRETED XIII 

about matters of doctrine or practice, notwithstanding that 
those so perscuted have been clean in the sight of God. 

Said Jesus : "Beware of men : for they will deliver you up 
to the councils, and they will scourge you in their synagogues" 
(Matt. 10:17). "They shall put you out of the synagogues: 
yea, the time cometh, that whosoever killeth you will think 
that he doeth God service. And these things will they do unto 
you, because they have not known the Father, nor me" (John 
16:2). 

6. Ecclesiastical organizations have often refused the 
right to receive or to administer the spiritual offices of Chris- 
tianity, such as baptism, communion, preaching, healing the 
sick, teaching, etc., except to those officially recognized by the 
organization. This interference is often just ; but many times 
in history it has been unjust, to the point of an unbearable 
tyranny, which has repressed that liberty of thought and action 
which is the inalienable heritage of the children of God. 

7. Ecclesiastical organizations often unwittingly are a 
stumbling block to progress through a disposition on the part 
of some of their members to be satisfied with bearing the 
name of a Christian organization, having a feeling that this 
makes them respectable and even righteous, while omitting 
to be as zealous as they should be to attain the essence of 
Christianity in thought and practice, independently of its name 
and form. 

There is no religion so spiritual that the people adhering 
to it do not need to be on their guard against being entangled 
in error through its human organization. 



THE TWO BEASTS 

The broadest interpretation of chapter 13 would seem to 
be this, — that the first beast, described in verses 1-8, symbol- 
izes worldly government, rising up out of disorganized states 
of human society, and largely taking its incentive for organi- 
zation and activity from the carnal propensities of human 
nature. As "seven" is a number of completeness, the "seven 
heads and ten horns" of the beast probably symbolize all 
worldly empires and kingdoms. The second beast, described 
in the remainder of the chapter, seems to typify the worldly 
church in its various branches. The two beasts stand for what 
may be termed human domination in all its forms, both 
political and ecclesiastical. 

In verses 7-18 of chapter 17, St. John partially interprets 
chapter 13. When he says (verse 10 of chapter 17), concern- 
ing the seven heads of the beast, "five are fallen, and one is, 
and one is yet to come", he may mean to indicate that the 
reign of worldly government has largely, or five-sevenths, 
passed away. 

When he says, in verse 3 of chapter 13, "I saw one of his 
heads as it were wounded to death; and his deadly wound was 
healed; and all the world wondered after the beast", he un- 
doubtedly means to indicate that he sees the Roman empire, 
as one of the chief manifestations of worldly government, 
destroyed ; and perhaps he felt that the pure teaching of spir- 
itual Christianity in a century or two following his own time 
would nearly destroy worldly government once for all; but 
he sees that there is still too much evil and materiality in human 
nature for this to be so soon accomplished, and so worldly 
government will be rehabilitated under other forms concern- 
ing which he prophesies in the seventeenth chapter. 

Although the primary and broadest significance of the 
word "seven" in this chapter is denoted by the word all, and so 
all forms of worldly government are prophesied against, never- 

267 



268 



REVELATION INTERPRETED 



XIII 



theless a very interesting and instructive historical interpre- 
tation can be given in terms of the number "seven" taken 
literally, and this interpretation merits rather extended com- 
ments, most of which, however, apply equally well, if con- 
sidered in connection with all the kingdoms and empires repre- 
senting worldly government in all ages. 

It is impossible to make an intelligent interpretation of the 
earlier portion of this chapter without considering the partial 
interpretation of it which St. John himself gives in verses 
7-18 of the 7th chapter, and without considering the 7th chap- 
ter of Daniel, upon which this prophecy of the beast is founded. 
Therefore, it will be exceedingly helpful to place what Daniel 
has to say and what St. John has to say on the subject side by 
side for the purposes of comparison. Interpretative notes will 
be incorporated with the text, enclosed in parentheses, which 
will suggest how Daniel's prophecy was actually fulfilled,* and 
also what seems to have been St. John's meaning. 



DANIEL, CHAPTER VII 
Amended Revised Version 

2 Daniel spake and said, I 
saw in my vision by night, 
and behold, the four winds 
of the heaven strove upon 
the great sea. 

3 And four great beasts 
came up from the sea, di- 
verse one from another. 

4 The first was like a lion, 
and had eagle's wings : I 
beheld till the wings there- 
of were plucked, and it was 
lifted up from the earth, 
and made stand upon the 
feet as a man, and a man's 
heart was given to it. (The 
Babylonian Empire.) 

5 And behold another beast, 
a second like to a bear, and 
it raised up itself on one 



REVELATION, CHAPTER XIII 

Suggestive Paraphrase 

1 And I saw a beast (The Roman 
Empire) rise up out of the sea, 
having seven heads and ten horns, 
and upon his horns ten crowns, 
and upon his heads the name of 
blasphemy. 

2 And the beast which I saw was 
like unto a leopard (The Mace- 
donian Empire), and his feet were 
as the feet of a bear (The Medo- 
Persian Empire), and his mouth 
as the mouth of a lion (The Baby- 
lonian Empire), and the dragon 
gave him his power, and his seat, 
and great authority. 



* The writer does not feel sure that Daniel could foresee the future as to ex- 
act names, places and dates : but he foresaw human tendencies at work, concern- 
ing the future results of which he prophesied in general terms. The inserted 
notes suggest the specific way in which the general forecast was actually ful- 
filled. 



XIII 



SECTION IV 



269 



Amended Revised Version 
side, and it had three ribs in 
the mouth of it between the 
teeth of it : and they said 
thus unto it, Arise, devour 
much flesh. (The Medo- 
Persian Empire.) 

6 After this I beheld, and 
lo another, like a leopard, 
which had upon the back of 
it four wings of a fowl ; 
and the beast had also four 
heads ; and dominion was 
given to it. (The Mace- 
donian Empire.) 

7 After this I saw in the 
night visions, and behold a 
fourth beast, dreadful and 
terrible, and strong exceed- 
ingly; and it had great iron 
teeth : it devoured and 
brake in pieces, and stamp- 
ed the residue with the feet 
of it : and it was diverse 
from all the beasts that 
were before it ; and it haa 
ten horns. (The Roman 
Empire.) 

8 I considered the horns, 
and, behold, there came up 
among them another little 
horn (The worldly church), 
before whom there were 
three of the first horns 
plucked up by the roots : 
and, behold, in this horn 
were eyes like the eyes of 
man, and a mouth speaking 
great things. 

ii And I beheld then be- 
cause of the voice of the 
great words which the 
horn (The worldly church) 
spake : I beheld even till 
the beast (the Roman Em- 
pire) was slain, and his 
body destroyed, and given 
to the burning flame. 

12 As concerning the rest of 
the beasts (the three em- 
pires), they had their do- 
minion taken away : yet 
their lives were prolonged 
for a season and time. 



Suggestive Paraphrase 
3 And I saw one of his heads as 
it were wounded to death ; and 
his deadly wound was healed : and 
all the world wondered after the 
beast. 



4 And they worshipped the dragon 
(mortal mind, the devil) which 
gave power unto the beast : and 
they worshipped the beast, saying, 
Who is like unto the beast? Who 
is able to make war with him? 



5 And there was given unto him 
a mouth speaking great things 
and blasphemies ; and power was 
given unto him (to worldly gov- 
ernment, the Roman Empire and 
its successors) to continue forty 
and two months (that is, during 
the time of satanic ascendency). 

6 And he opened his mouth in 
blasphemy against God, to blas- 
pheme his name, and his taber- 
nacle, and them that dwell in 
heaven. 



7 And it was given unto him to 
make war with the saints, and to 
overcome them : and power was 
given him over all kindreds, and 
tongues, and nations. 



8 And all that dwell upon the 
earth shall worship him, whose 
names are not written in the book 
of life of the Lamb slain from 
the foundation of the world. 



270 



REVELATION INTERPRETED 



XIII 



REVELATION, 
Amended Revised Version 
iy These great beasts, which 
are four, are four kings, 
which shall arise out of the 
earth. 

1 8 But the saints of the Most 
High shall take the king- 
dom, and possess the king- 
dom forever, even forever 
and ever. 

19 Then I would know the 
truth of the fourth beast 
which was diverse from all 
the others, exceedingly 
dreadful, whose teeth were 
of iron, and his nails of 
brass ; which devoured, 
brake in pieces, and stamped 
the residue with his feet. 

20 And of the ten horns 
that were in his head, and 
of the other which came up, 
and before whom three fell ; 
even of that horn that had 
eyes, and a mouth that 
spake very great things, 
whose look was more stout 
than his fellows. 



CHAPTER XVII 

Suggestive Paraphrase 

7 And the angel said unto me, 
Wherefore didst thou marvel? I 
will tell thee the mystery of the 
woman (Worldly Lust, typified 
by Babylon)* and of the beast 
(Worldly Government, manifest 
in John's day as the Roman Em- 
pire) that carrieth her, which hath 
the seven heads and ten horns. 

8 The beast that thou sawest was 
and is not ; and shall ascend out of 
the bottomless pit, and go into 
perdition : and they that dwell on 
the earth shall wonder, whose 
names are not written in the book 
of life from the foundation of the 
world, when they behold the beast 
that was, and is not, and yet is. 

9 And here is the mind which hath 
wisdom. The seven heads are 
seven mountains, on which the 
woman sitteth (Seven or all man- 
ifestations of worldly govern- 
ment). 

And there were seven kings : 
five are fallen (the Egyptian, As- 
syrian, Babylonian, Medo-Persian, 
Macedonian Empires), and one is 
(the Roman), and the other is not 
yet come (the Early German or 
"Holy Roman" Empire) ; and 
when he cometh, he must continue 
a short space. 



* Notes on "Babylon." The ancient city of Babylon, which was at the 
height of its power about 600 B. C, was the embodiment of worldliness, super- 
stition, tyranny, cruelty, sorcery, materialism, carnality, false doctrine, — the 
embodiment of all that was apostate to Spirit and Christ. Among the Jews, 
Babylon was the symbol of all the above evil influences. Hence, John, born a 
Jew and writing to Christians most of whom had been born Jews, speaks of 
Babylon as "the great whore" (17:1), and uses it as the personification of 
Worldly Lust, upheld by seven (all) great empires of this world (17:9, 10), 
and calls Lust, personified as Babylon, "that great city, which reigneth over 
the kings of the earth" (17 :18). 

It is this mental Babylon, Worldly Lust, which John declares, "is fallen, 
is fallen" (14 :8 ; 18 :2), and concerning which he exhorts : "Come out of her, 
my people, tbat ye be not partakers of her sins, and that ye receive not of 
her plagues" (18:4), He sees the mental Babylon as fallen,"that is. apostate 
from Truth and good, in his own time, and continuing in that condition for 
centuries, but he does not prophesy its destruction until near the end of the 
world. All people who are under the dominion of the influences above enumer- 
ated are under the dominion of mental Babylon, and are tributary to it, 
whether they are classed by men or by themselves as Catholic or Protestant, 
Jew or Christian Scientist." Those who are not under the dominion of these 
mental influences are not tributary to mental Babylon, even though they bear 
the name of any church or no church. 



XIII 



SECTION IV 



271 



Amended Revised Version 

21 I beheld, and the same 
horn (the worldly church) 
made war with the saints, 
and prevailed against them ; 

22 Until the Ancient of days 
came, and judgment was 
given to the saints of the 
most High ; and the time 
came that the saints pos- 
sessed the kingdom. 

23 Thus he said, The fourth 
beast shall be the fourth 
kingdom upon earth, which 
shall be diverse from all 
kingdoms, and shall devour 
the whole earth, and shall 
tread it down, and break it 
in pieces (The Roman Em- 
pire.) 

24 And the ten horns out oi 
this kingdom are ten kings 
(nations built out of the 
fragments of the Roman 
Empire) that shall arise: 
and another shall rise after 
them (the worldly church 
taking form as the early 
Papal dominion, which came 
to virtually control the 
affairs of the nations of 
western Europe, or about 
three-tenths of the former 
Roman Empire) ; and he 
shall be diverse from the 
first, and he shall subdue 
three kings. 

25 And he shall speak great 
words against the most 
High, and shall wear out 
the saints of the most High, 
and think to change times* 
and laws : and they shall be 
given into his hand until a 
time and times and the di- 
viding of time. (The period 
of time here spoken of is 
the same as the "time, times, 



Suggestive Paraphrase 
11 And the beast that was, and is 
not, even he is the eighth, and is 
of the seven, and goeth into per- 
dition. 



12 And the ten horns which thou 
sawest are ten kings (Nations 
which later were to rise out of 
the ruins of the Roman Empire), 
which have received no kingdom 
yet ; but receive power as kings 
one hour with the beast. 



13 These have one mind, and shall 
give their power and strength un- 
to the beast. 



14 These shall make war with the 
Lamb, and. the Lamb shall over- 
come them ; for he is Lord of 
lords, and King of kings : and 
they that are with him are called, 
and chosen, and faithful. 



15 And he saith unto me, The 
waters which thou sawest, where 
the whore sitteth, are peoples, 
and multitudes, and nations, and 
tonsrues. 



* Pope Gregory XIII changed the calendar, and the Roman Church, during 
its ascendency, changed many laws. 



272 



REVELATION INTERPRETED 



XIII : 1 



Amended Revised Version 
and half a time," spoken of 
in Revelation, and denotes 
the whole period of appar- 
ent satanic supremacy in 
the world). 

26 But the judgment shall 
sit, and they shall take away 
his dominion, to consume 
and to destroy unto the end. 

2J And the kingdom and do- 
minion and the greatness of 
the kingdom under the 
whole heaven shall be given 
to the people of the saints 
of the most High, whose 
kingdom is an everlasting 
kingdom, and all dominions 
shall serve and obey him. 

28 Hitherto is the end of 
the matter. As for me, 
Daniel, my cogitations much 
troubled me, and my coun- 
tenance changed in me : but 
I kept the matter in my 
heart. 



Suggestive Paraphrase 
16 And the ten horns which thou 
sawest upon the beast, these shall 
hate the whore (Lust), and shall 
make her desolate and naked, and 
shall eat her flesh, and burn her 
with fire. 



17 For God hath put in their 
hearts to fulfil his will, and to 
agree, and give their kingdom 
unto the beast until the words of 
God shall be fulfilled. 



18 And the woman which thou 
sawest is that great city, which 
reigneth over the kings of the 
earth. 



It will now be useful to comment upon these verses from 
Revelation, verse by verse, commencing with the thirteenth 
chapter of Revelation. 

Verse 1 "And I stood upon the sand of the sea, and (I) saw a beast 
rise up out of the sea, having seven heads and ten horns, and upon his 
horns ten crowns, and upon his heads the name of blasphemy." (liter- 
ally, names of profanation). 

As already noted, the first clause of this verse belongs with 
the preceding chapter. The beast mentioned in this verse, and 
following, seems to symbolize civil government, although it is 
civil government largely identified in St. John's thought with 
the Roman Empire, since, in his day, the Roman Empire 
embodied within itself all the civil government of the known 
world, or of the world with which St. John was acquainted. 
Why civil government, as represented by the Roman Empire 
and later forms of government, was inimical to the progress 



XIII : 1 SECTION IV 273 

of men toward true Christianity has been spoken of already, 
and will be spoken of, especially in the comment upon the last 
few verses of this 13th chapter. This beast is represented as 
rising up "out of the sea" , while the second beast spoken of in 
verse 11 of this chapter is represented as "coming up out of 
the earth." The "sea" seems here to symbolize unorganized 
and uncivilized humanity, while the "earth" seems to sym- 
bolize organized, civilized society. Civil government, the 
Roman Empire, and the various previous empires out of which 
the Roman Empire was formed, are represented as springing 
up out of disorganized conditions of humanity, producing a 
comparative condition of order. The "seven heads" of this 
beast, civil government, may be considered as the five great 
empires which had passed away, the Roman Empire which was 
in existence in John's time, and another empire which St. John 
foresaw would follow, his vision being fulfilled in the early 
German empire, which styled itself "the Holy Roman Empire", 
and which held under its sway practically all of the nations 
of western Europe for a short time about the nth century 
A. D. (See Chapter 17:10). This empire succeeded to the 
power and many of the customs and practices of the heathen 
Roman Empire of St. John's day. The five "heads", or 
empires which had fallen, were the Egyptian, Assyrian, Baby- 
lonian, Medo-Persian, and Macedonian empires. These 
empires had all, in their time, been exceedingly materialistic 
and wicked in their character, and had been, more or less, per- 
secutors of spiritual religion as held among the Jews of Old 
Testament times. The "ten horns" symbolize nations which 
were to spring up out of the fragments of the Roman Empire, 
after it went to pieces. Whether the nations that did spring 
up were exactly "ten", does not especially matter. These 
nations or "kings" had "received no kingdom as yet" in St. 
John's time, but, somewhat later, were to receive the power 
of civil government, especially that derived from the fallen 
Roman Empire, unto themselves for a time. (See chapter 
17:12.) The "ten crowns" were symbols of the authority of 



274 REVELATION INTERPRETED XIII: 2 

these nations, when they should spring up. All of the seven 
empires, or "heads", claimed that the primary allegiance of 
their subjects was due to them; and, in fact, all of them 
claimed, more or less, to stand in the place of God, or of the 
higher unseen powers, and claimed that their laws and edicts 
were the voice of supreme good. For instance, if a citizen of 
Russia or Germany, in this year of 191 5, were to say, "My 
sense of my duty to God forbids my enlisting in the army, or 
taking part in war", the state, through its officers, would 
virtually say to him, "Never mind about your sense of your 
duty to God. Obey the commands of the officers of your 
country, else you will go to prison or to death." In assuming 
such an attitude, as all nations do or may at times, the state, 
by trying to place itself in supreme authority, assumes that 
power which belongs to God only. Thus, it virtually puts 
itself in the place of God, and so is irreverent toward God. 
This is why St. John says that "the name of blasphemy" 
(Greek, names of profanation) was upon all these heads. As 
a matter of fact, many of their laws and edicts were very far 
from being founded upon supreme good, as has been the case 
with all civil governments in the world thus far. The laws, 
edicts, and policies of all governments have been founded upon 
the supposition that matter is real and is substance, that evil 
is as real as good, that material possessions are more to be 
guarded by government than spiritual riches. Governments 
resting upon such a false foundation could never fail to be 
an obstacle to the spiritual growth of their citizens toward 
that which is highest. 

Verse 2 "And the beast which I saw was like unto a leopard, and 
his feet were as the feet of a bear, and his mouth as the mouth of a 
lion: and the dragon gave him power, and his seat, and great authority." 

The first portion of this verse will be absolutely plain, if 
the reader will first read verses 4-7 of the 7th chapter of 
Daniel. The Roman Empire was the immediate successor of 
the Babylonian, Medo-Persian, and Macedonian Empires, and 



XIII: 2 SECTION IV 275 

gathered up into itself all the worldly power and wealth, and 
all the lusts, sorceries, idolatries, superstitions, cruelties, and 
tyrannies of the three empires from which it sprang, making 
abundant additions of its own. One acquainted with history 
knows that the Roman Empire was well symbolized by "the 
leopard, with his sudden, cruel spring ; the bear, with his slow, 
relentless brutishness ; and the lion, with his all-conquering 
power" (Prof. Wm. Milligan). The ''dragon', satan, the 
devil, gave to this Roman Empire, and usually gives to civil 
government, "his power, and his seat, and great authority'. 
This is not saying that civil government is not necessary to 
human progress thus far, and it is not saying that it does not 
represent good as well as evil; it is simply saying, that the 
Roman Empire represented "the prince of this world" instead 
of Christ far more than it should, even considering the condi- 
tion of the people over whom it ruled, and it is saying that all 
other civil governments, thus far, have fallen short of their 
duty in the same manner. 

In this second verse St. John tells us that human govern- 
ments, on occasion, exhibit all the fierce cruelty of a leopard, 
the untiring, relentless cunning of a bear, and the pitiless voracity 
of a lion. When aroused, they care not how much suffering 
they occasion through war, but will spring at each other like 
leopards, sometimes with scarcely a moment's notice. Through 
tKeir subtle, and often lying diplomacy, they will pursue some 
selfish object for decade after decade, and century after cen- 
tury, always working relentlessly for the same end — material 
' conquest — no matter what temporary checks they may receive, 
often pursuing their objects with such cunning that their 
purposes are not detected for a time. Russia's continued 
plotting to gain possession of the Dardanelles is an example; 
Germany's policy, pursued for years, to gain mastery of the 
world's trade, and England's consistent policy to prevent this, 
are other examples. Nothing so aptly symbolizes the devour- 
ing of property and human life at the instigation of human 
governments, especially in war time, as the lion's mouth. 



276 REVELATION INTERPRETED XIII: 3 

Verse 3 "And I sazv one of his heads as it were wounded to death; 
and his deadly wound zvas healed; and all the world wondered after the 
beast/' 

In St. John's time, the one prominent "head" assumed by 
civil government was the Roman Empire, which, like other 
human governments, asserted the claim, through its emperors, 
to supreme authority. In fact, some of its emperors demanded 
that they be worshipped as God. Through the teaching and 
demonstrations of Christ Jesus and his followers, the suprem- 
acy of worldly authority came near being overthrown, in favor 
of such a generally recognized sense of the supremacy of the 
government of Spirit that people came near gaining liberty to 
render allegiance to God alone in matters of conduct. Thus, 
this "head" of worldly government, the Roman Empire, was 
seen "as it were wounded to death" through being nearly 
destroyed by the demonstration of spiritual power; but the 
Christian church made the mistake of taking the Emperor 
Constantine and his court into it, without their being really 
converted. They joined the church for political reasons, 
because it was becoming popular ; and, because of their worldly 
prominence, the church placed many unspiritual men in posi- 
tions of ecclesiastical influence and authority. In this and 
other ways, the church lost its hold upon spiritual power, and 
the material and worldly sense of things again gained suprem- 
acy. Thus "the deadly wound" of worldly authority and 
power "was healed." Since that time, "all the world" has been 
"wondering" after the "beast" ; that is, marveling at the mag- 
nificence and seeming power of human government, as repre- 
sented in the various nationalities. 

Jesus knew the falsity of this magnificence and seeming 
power of the material world, as did John, who gave the fol- 
lowing warning: "Love not the world, neither the things 
that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of 
the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world, the lust 
of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is 
not of the Father, but is of the world." (I John 2:15, 16.) 



X IH:4,5 SECTION IV 277 

Verse 4 "And they worshipped the dragon which gave power unto 
the beast: and they worshipped the beast, saying, Who is like unto the 
beast? who is able to make zvar with him?" 

And men would continue to worship the dragon, the devil, 
with his claims of materiality, fleshly pleasure, worldly magnifi- 
cence, etc., in the desire for which on the part of men is rooted 
both the power of satan and of worldly government over them. 
Citizens of every nation are wont to exclaim, "What nation 
is like our nation ? Who is able to make war with our nation ?" 
Whether, as a matter of fact, the given nation is particularly 
strong or not from a worldly standpoint, does not matter. The 
mass of its citizens think of it as all-powerful. This is part 
of what they call "patriotism." 

You can hear the Russian, or the German, or the French- 
man, or the Englishman, or (in the early autumn of 1914) 
even the citizen of little Belgium, exclaiming, "What country 
is like unto my country? Who is able to make war with it?" 
Thus do they each think of a human government as supreme 
in power, and so they virtually worship it. They virtually 
take part in the sentiment, "My country! May she be right; 
but, right or wrong, my country!" This is to render supreme 
mental allegiance to that which is not God, and this is to 
"zuorship the beast." 

Verse 5 "And there was given unto him a mouth speaking great 
things and blasphemies; and power ivas given unto him to continue 
forty and two months." 

And there was given unto the various forms of civil gov- 
ernment a mouth speaking great things, making extravagant 
claims, and exalting its own power to such an extent that it 
virtually or openly claimed to stand in the place of God, thus 
uttering "blasphemies ' . And St. John prophesies that power 
will be given to the beast, after its deadly wound is healed, 
to seduce and tyrannize over men for forty and two apoca- 
lyptic months, which, as before pointed out, is synonymous 
with three and one-half apocalyptic years ("time, times, and 



278 REVELATION INTERPRETED XIII: 6 

half a time," chap. 12:14), or 1260 apocalyptic days (chapter 
11 :i3). This is the length of time which St. John repeatedly 
speaks of as the period during which he foresees that evil 
will manifest marked preponderance over good in the world. 
We are elsewhere (Rev. 20:1-3) prophetically informed 
that, during the latter portion of the time sense, satan, the 
spirit of discord and worldliness, will be bound and cast into 
"the bottomless pit" (the realm of nothingness; for that which 
is bottomless will hold nothing), and the millennium, the period 
of perfect harmony and of a high degree of spirituality, will 
appear. Thus, at the last, God will be recognized as the only 
ruler in the world, even before the material sense of earth, 
and the sense of time with it, is finally destroyed. We are yet 
in the period where satan and "the beast" are in dominant 
authority in human affairs. Any observing citizen can readily 
see that, in any nation or city, when an issue is squarely drawn 
between peace and war, between greedy commercialism and 
a spirit of fairness, between vice and purity, between temper- 
ance and the saloon forces, the government of the nation or 
city, through its officials, is very prone to take the side of evil. 

Verse 6 "And he opened his mouth in blasphemy against God, to 
blaspheme his name, and his tabernacle, and them that dzvell in heaven." 

As already pointed out, practically all civil governments 
blaspheme God in practice, even though they may claim to be 
serving Him and to be ruling by His authority, and they 
blaspheme His tabernacle because they do not in practice 
recognize God's spiritual covenant with His people as being 
inviolable, and as having the right of way over any demands 
which they are inclined to make. Civil governments are also 
accustomed to regard as "impossible" citizens those who are 
most loyal to the demands of spiritual living, and who refuse 
to have part in war, and to countenance laws which bulwark 
lust, intemperance, etc. In most of these respects, the most 
enlightened modern governments are, of course, less flagrantly 



XIII : 7, 8 SECTION IV 279 

sinful than was the Roman Empire and the earlier govern- 
ments. 

Verse J "And it was given unto him to make zvar with the saints, 
and to overcome them: and power was given him over all kingdoms, 
and tongues, and nations/' 

Nearly all civil governments have persecuted, at times, their 
most spiritual citizens in one way or another ; and the Roman 
Empire and some of the earlier governments which sprang 
from it made it impossible for its most spiritual citizens to live. 

It has never been the case in any nation in the world, thus 
far, that any of its citizens could live in strict obedience to the 
nature of God, for any considerable length of time, and main- 
tain their human lives and liberties. Invariably, the state has 
forced its citizens into war, or into paying taxes for the sup- 
port of war and other ungodlike undertakings, and into being 
parties to the enforcement of ungodlike laws. Those who have 
refused to do these things, on any and every occasion, the 
state has cast into prison or killed. Thus has it "made war 
with the saints/' and outwardly "overcome them/' and has 
had power over all humanity, as a whole. 

Verse 8 "And all that dwell upon the earth shall worship him, 
whose names are not written in the book of life of the Lamb slain from 
the foundation of the world." 

In all centuries since the time of Jesus, the most spiritual, 
"whose names are written in the Lamb's book of life" , have 
persisted in rendering allegiance to God rather than to the civil 
power, when there was any conflict between the demands of 
the two, sacrificing their lives if need be. All others have 
acknowledged by their conduct, if not by their thought, that 
the civil power was supreme. "The Lamb" is, of course, the 
Christ-mind, and as human consciousness has been, for the 
most part, "dead to the truth" since the foundation of the 
mortal world, from the world's standpoint the truth or Christ- 
mind is dead, or "slain". Mortal sense is always attempting 



280 REVELATION INTERPRETED XIII: 9, 10 

to kill the truth, and, thus far, has mostly succeeded in keeping 
it out of human consciousness. 

Verse g "If any man have an ear, let him hear." 

If any man has the capacity to understand this teaching, 
let him govern himself accordingly. 

Verse io "He that leadeth into captivity shall go into captivity; he 
that killeth with the sword must be killed zvith the szvord. Here is the 
patience and faith of the saints." 

He that would put another in bondage thereby shows his 
implicit belief that there is some other power or law than 
God's law of liberty. Thus he mentally entangles himself in 
the belief of bondage, and by that very fact he is in bondage 
mentally, and, sooner or later, this inner belief is almost sure 
to externalize itself. He that kills with the sword enmeshes 
himself in a mental atmosphere of cruelty and death and in 
outward associations that are on that level; consequently, he 
places himself in a position, mentally and outwardly, for be- 
coming subject to the very evil that he metes out to another. 
No human can inflict evil of any kind upon another without 
mentally selling himself to that same evil; consequently, of a 
necessity he himself falls into the pit which he digs for an- 
other. Knowing this, St. John says that the saints, while 
suffering outward persecution at the hands of evil-doers, can 
have patience and confidence, with the full assurance that all 
evil doing will automatically punish and destroy itself, while 
"It can never destroy one iota of good" ("Science and 
Health," p. 186) ; for all good is of God, and so is eternal. 



NOTES BY THE READER 281 



282 NOTES BY THE READER 



(XVII: 7, 8) SECTION IV 283 



CHAPTER XVII 

Verse J "And the angel said unto me, Wherefore didst thou marvel? 
I will tell thee the mystery of this woman, and of the beast that carrieth 
her, which hath the seven heads and ten horns." 

• The "woman" spoken of in this verse is symbolical of 
Worldly Lust, typified by Babylon, and regarded as the incar- 
nation of lust and false doctrine. The "beast" spoken of is the 
same beast as the one described in chapter 13. As there 
pointed out, this beast is the civil government ; but the civil 
governments which sprang up out of the ruins of the Roman 
Empire, so far as those governments were included in Chris- 
tendom, were, in the early centuries of the Middle Ages, so 
dominated by the Papacy that it was difficult to determine 
where civil government left off and where ecclesiastical gov- 
ernment began. So nearly were church and state one in these 
early times, that many commentators have thought that the 
first beast should be regarded as referring to the Papacy, when 
the beast came to life after "its deadly wound was healed" ; 
but, strictly speaking, this is not the case. In verse 10 of this 
chapter, St. John is careful to tell us that the "king" or "head" 
which "is not yet come" "must continue a short space.'' 
Accordingly, when the beast comes to life under the seventh 
head, St. John does not represent its coming to life as the 
Papacy; for if he did, his prediction was not fulfilled, since 
the Papacy has endured more than "a short space". The beast 
came to life as a civil power, as it had been before it received 
the "deadly wound". It came to life as the early German or 
"Holy Roman" Empire, which was a civil power, embodying 
for "a short space" (about the nth century A. D.) practically 
all the nations of Christendom ; but it was a civil power closely 
related to the Papacy, as above indicated, as were the nations 
preceding it and those immediately following it. 

Verse 8 "The beast that thou sazvest was, and is not; and shall as- 
cend out of the bottomless pit, and go into perdition: and they that 



284 REVELATION INTERPRETED (XVII : 9, 10) 

dwell on the earth shall wonder, whose navies were not zi'vitten in the 
book of life from the foundation of the world, when they behold the 
beast that was, and is not, and yet is." 

St. John writes this verse as from the point of view of one 
who is living in the time when the Roman Empire has gone 
to pieces, and so speaks of it as the "beast that was, and is 
not" . St. John lived a little earlier than this, but he projects 
himself forward in thought to this time. When he says that 
the beast "shall ascend out of the bottomless pit, and go into 
perdition", he means to assert that human organization on its 
material side comes from nothing and goes to nothing, — 
whence one could readily infer that, in the meantime, it really 
is nothing. In the last half of this verse, St. John virtually 
tells us that those having the material sense of things "shall 
wonder" at the apparent magnitude, splendor, and strength of 
human government, but those "whose names were written in 
the book of life from the foundation of the world" (that is, 
those who have attained the spiritual mind) will not wonder 
or be astonished at the apparent power or magnificence of the 
Roman Empire, or any other human government, because they 
see its nothingness, and see that the government of God is 
the only true and permanent government. 

Verses g, io '''And here is the mind zvhich hath wisdom. The seven 
heads are seven mountains, on zvhich the woman sitteth. And there are 
seven kings: five are fallen, and one is, and the other is not yet come; 
and when lie cometli, lie must continue a short space." 

In these two verses the "seven heads" are made to do duty 
for a double symbolism. The Twentieth Century New Testa- 
ment translates these two verses as follows : "The seven heads 
are seven mountains upon which the woman is seated. They 
are also seven kings, of whom five have fallen and one 
remains, while one is not yet come. When he comes, he must 
stay for a little while." The seven mountains represent seven 
or all phases of worldly government, which is always domi- 



(XVII: 11, 12) SECTION IV 285 

nated by, and, in turn, upholds Worldly Lust. The five 
"kings" or "heads" of civil government that had fallen in 
St. John's time were the Egyptian, Assyrian, Babylonian, 
Medo-Persian, and Macedonian empires. The "king" that 
"is" in his time is the Roman Empire. The prophecy, con- 
cerning the "king" that "is not yet come", was fulfilled in the 
early German or "Holy Roman" Empire, as already pointed 
out. 

Verse n "And the beast that was, and is not, even he is the eighth, 

and is of the seven, and goeth into perdition." 

St. John does not foretell in detail how the problem of 
civil government will work out beyond the time when the over- 
thrown Roman Empire shall be rehabilitated as ten kingdoms 
(see next verse), a portion of which, he forsees, will be 
gathered together for a little time into a kingdom, as happened 
in the "Holy Roman" Empire ; but he evidently foresees that 
civil government will continue beyond the period of which he 
more definitely speaks, and he foresees that, as long as civil 
government lasts, it will be fundamentally human and mate- 
rialistic, rather than divine, in its character. So he tells us 
in this verse that the "beast" , civil government, will continue 
for a time in some form after the seven "kings" that he tells 
us of have passed away, and that this continuing civil govern- 
ment will derive its power as the successor of the seven great 
governments which had preceded it, but that this continuing 
civil government, after whatever forms it may finally assume, 
will ultimately "go into perdition", destruction, nothingness. 

Verse 12 "And the ten horns which thou sazvest are ten kings, 
which have received no kingdom as yet; but receive power as kings one 
hour with the beast." 

The "ten kings" here spoken of, without doubt, refer to 
nations that would spring up out of the fallen Roman Empire. 
Whether the number that did spring up was exactly ten or 



286 RE VELATION INTERPRETED (XVII : 11, 12) 

not, does not especially matter. These kingdoms "received 
power as kings one hour with the beast" ; that is, they exer- 
cised civil authority for a short time, the civil authority which 
they derived as the immediate successors of the Roman 
Empire. So, during this time, they were in general sympathy 
with the spirit of Roman imperialism. However, after a short 
time, some of them were swallowed up in the "Holy Roman" 
Empire above spoken of, and others east and south of the 
Mediterranean Sea gradually changed their forms and boun- 
daries. 

Some commentators have believed that the scarlet colored 
beast was intended by John to symbolize a definite forevision 
which he had of the Roman Catholic church, and that the 
woman seated on the beast was intended to typify the Catholic 
hierarchy at Rome, and that he meant "seven mountains" to 
refer to the seven hills of Rome. They also say that the sen- 
tence, "These have one mind, and shall give their power and 
strength unto the beast/' was intended to mean that the king- 
doms which would spring up after the fall of the Roman 
Empire would be tributary for a time to the Catholic church ; 
but when, later, "these shall hate the whore" (verse 16), they 
will turn away from Catholicism and the Papacy. The com- 
mentators maintain that this part of the prophecy was par- 
tially fulfilled at the Reformation, and that it has been partly 
fulfilled in more recent times in the partial defection of Italy, 
France, Portugal, etc., from the Papal rule, — a defection which 
is likely to become practically complete. 

The author does not believe that John foresaw quite so 
definite a program as this, though this program is in line with 
the general movements which John forecasts, as indicated pre- 
viously. 

Because of the uniformity of human nature, history keeps 
repeating itself along somewhat the same general lines ; and, 
accordingly, a general description of the relations of human 
activities to Worldly Lust and worldly government, and of 
the outcome of such relations, would be sure to include, and 



(XVII : 13-17) SECTION IV 287 

resemble in description, any particular movement along these 
lines in human history, — so much so that any given historical 
movement, viewed in the retrospect, might fulfill the general 
prophecy in such minute details as to deceive many into believ- 
ing that that particular movement was prophetically re- 
ferred to by definite forevision. 

Verse 13 "These have one mind, and shall give their power and 
strength unto the beast." 

This verse asserts that the ten kingdoms "have one mind", 
that is, the "carnal mind", "and shall give their power and 
strength unto the beast" ; that is, as long as they exist, they 
shall be exponents of civil power or government, with its evil 
and materialistic tendencies. 

Verse 14 "These shall make -war with the Lamb, and the Lamb shall 
overcome them: for he is Lord of lords and King of kings; and they 
that are with him arc called, and chosen, and faithful." 

All civil governments, on their human and material side, 
are opposed to spiritual truth, and war with it, but shall ulti- 
mately be overcome and destroyed. 

Verse 15 "And he saith unto me, The waters which thou sawest, 
where the zi'hore sitteth, are peoples, and multitudes, and nations, and 
tongues." 

This verse refers back to the earlier portion of the 17th 
chapter, and is self-interpretative. 

Verses 16. 17 "And the ten horns zvhich thou sazvest upon the 
beast, these shall hate the whore, and shall make her desolate and 
naked, and shall eat her flesh, and shall burn her with fire. For God 
hath put into their hearts to fulfil his will, and to agree, and give their 
kingdom unto the beast, until the words of God shall be fulfilled." 

The significance of these verses probably is, that the king- 
doms which will spring up after the fall of the Roman Empire, 
and for that matter all the kingdoms of the world, will ulti- 
mately be so converted to the Christ, that they will turn 



288 REVELATION INTERPRETED (XVII : 16, 17) 

against Worldly Lust, and will thus leave it without followers 
and without substance, and they will so mentally enforce 
truth against it as to cause it to utterly disappear. For in the 
order of their development, they will first serve worldly gov- 
ernment, but when the purpose of God is fully revealed to 
them, they will "fulfill His will" by hating Worldly Lust and 
destroying it. 

The interpretation of the seventh chapter of Daniel will 
be evident, if read as given, with notes interspersed, on pages 
270-272 of this book. 



NOTES BY THE READER 289 



290 NOTES BY THE READER 



XIII: 11 SECTION IV 291 



The Second Beast 

(Chapter 13:11-18) 

Verse 11 "And I beheld another beast coining up out of the earth; 
and he had tzvo horns like a Lamb, and he spake as a dragon." 

This beast symbolizes ecclesiastical organization or govern- 
ment, which may well be spoken of in this connection as the 
Worldly Church. The first beast mentioned in this chapter 
is described as rising "out of the sea"; that is, out of dis- 
organized states of society, as previously explained: and this 
second beast is represented as "coming up out of the earth" ; 
that is, out of an organized state of society, as before ex- 
plained. Ecclesiasticism almost invariably, if not quite so, 
springs up in a state of society where civil government (the 
first beast) is already pretty firmly established. Ecclesiasti- 
cisms, at their start at least, and largely throughout their con- 
tinuance, derive their power of organization and their ability 
to enforce many of their own laws largely from the civil 
governments of the countries in which they exist. The first 
Pope of Rome was proclaimed universal bishop of the 
Christian church by the Emperor of Rome; this occurred in 
A. D. 606, when Phocas was Emperor. And the civil rulers of 
western Europe continued to support the Papacy, until, in 
time, it became more powerful, even in civil affairs, than they 
were ; and, for a time, much of the civil policy of the nations 
of Christendom was dictated by the Pope. This was especially 
true from the 12th to the 14th centuries, and has been true 
with some of the governments down to very recent times. 
All of the Protestant ecclesiasticisms of Europe and America 
are organized under charters from the civil governments of 
the several countries in which they exist and work; and their 
power to enforce their decrees and discipline among their 
members along many lines depends upon the fact that the 
civil authorities will support them in so doing. So ecclesiasti- 
cism is largely a creature of civil government, of the first beast, 



292 REVELATION INTERPRETED XIII : 11 

and so, the second beast, "exerciseth all the power of the first 
beast before him" (verse 12). 

"The Lamb" is especially the symbol of Christ through- 
out the Apocalypse. This second beast is represented as hav- 
ing "two horns like a lamb" . The horn, in the Apocalypse, is 
always the symbol of power. Accordingly, the declaration 
that the Worldly Church has two horns like a lamb is equiva- 
lent to saying that it claims to exercise the power of Christ 
in two phases ; and that is exactly what it does, although its 
claim is usually largely false. The Worldly Church formu- 
lates a creed, and then declares that this creed has the author- 
ity of Christ, and is backed by his power. As a matter of fact, 
no creed has the authority of Christ, except in so far as it 
represents eternal truth. Secondly, the Worldly Church claims 
to do the healing work of Christ; and yet, since the first few 
centuries, the methods of healing authorized and propagated 
by the Worldly Church (with the exception of the Christian 
Science organization) have not been the methods of Christ, 
but of antichrist. The Christ-method of healing is to rely upon 
the activity of the divine- Mind, Spirit; while the churches 
have, since the third century, authorized and propagated 
methods of healing which depend upon matter, and, within the 
last few years especially, many of them, through their clergy, 
have directly used and fostered methods of healing which 
depend upon the use of hypnotism, and other recognized mani- 
festations of "the carnal mind", which St. Paul described as 
"enmity against God". For centuries, various so-called Chris- 
tian churches have sent medical doctors and others schooled in 
material medicine into their missionary fields ; and it is a 
matter patent to all beholders, how both the Catholic and 
Protestant churches have worked hand in hand, for centuries, 
with this material system. They have founded almost unnum- 
bered hospitals, in which the sick are treated wholly by mate- 
rial means, notwithstanding Christ taught that Spirit alone is 
to be depended upon for healing, and for all other help in time 
of need. The disposition of various churches to propagate 



XIII : 11 SECTION IV 293 

healing methods known as "psycho-therapy" and "suggestive 
therapeutics" is well known. Thus, through their creeds on 
the one hand, and through their healing methods on the other, 
the various churches of Christendom have claimed to repre- 
sent both the word and the works of Christ (that is, they have 
claimed to have the two horns of the Lamb) ; and in both cases 
their claim has been largely false, and so, largely, they have 
stood, not for Christ, but for antichrist. That is one of the 
reasons why ecclesiasticism is spoken of as a beast. 

It is intei. sting to note that the word in the original Greek 
which is translated "beast" in both the first and eleventh verses 
of this chapter is the word "tharion" , which, in the Greek, 
always means "wild beast" , as distinguished from a domestic 
beast. Civil and ecclesiastical governments are represented as 
untamable. They may be held in subjection in a measure, and 
may even be made to do useful work; but they must always 
be watched, and they can never be converted wholly to God's 
service. The millennium, the kingdom of God on earth, will 
never fully come until all need of human government has been 
outgrown ; that is, not until humanity has advanced to that 
point where it can do better without human organization than 
it can with such organization. This time is probably con- 
siderably in the future as yet, but note that the destruction of 
"the beast and the false prophet" is foretold in 19 :20, before 
the millennium is foretold in 20:1-4. 

Whenever a new discovery of religious truth has been made 
and spread among men, that truth soon built up an ecclesiasti- 
cism, which was useful for guarding and disseminating that 
phase of truth ; but when a still further advance was made in 
the discovery of truth, this same worldly organization has 
invariably opposed the propagation of the newer discovery. 
This fact Jesus referred to, when he told us not to put new 
wine (new inspiration or discovery of truth) into old skins 
(old ecclesiastical organizations), because the old skins cannot 
hold the new wine without breaking, when it ferments 
(becomes active) ; but he told us to put new wine (new dis- 



294 REVELATION INTERPRETED XIII : 12 

coveries of truth) into new skins (statements and organiza- 
tions). So, we see that ecclesiastical organization has ever 
been first a help and then a hindrance to the propagation of 
truth in all its phases among men. 

This beast is represented in verse n as speaking "as a 
dragon" ; that is, his voice is really the voice of satan (see 
chapter 12 :g). 

Verse 12 "And he excrciscth all the pozver of the first beast be- 
fore him, and causeth the earth and them which, dzvell therein to wor- 
ship the first beast, whose deadly wound was healed." 

The first clause of this verse has been interpreted in the 
comment on verse 11. Let it here be briefly stated that a 
dominant ecclesiasticism has usually derived its authority in 
matters of government largely from the civil authority, and is 
usually strongly backed by the civil authority in whatever it 
tries to do. In return, a dominant ecclesiasticism always 
co-operates with the civil government of the country in which 
it is instituted. The church teaches the people "patriotism". 
It will usually exercise its influence to induce the people to 
stand by the civil authorities, whether they be right or wrong, 
in either internal or external affairs. When a civil govern- 
ment is about to take a wrong course, the ecclesiasticisms 
within that country seldom take the part of a prophet, standing 
firmly, even in their mental attitude, against the civil govern- 
ment. A few clergymen, here and there, or other ecclesiastics, 
may take such a stand ; but there is scarcely a case in history 
where the entire body of an ecclesiastical organization has 
stood firmly and unitedly against a wrong course of the civil 
government. 

More than this, reforms in government and in morals are 
never originated, or in their early stages propagated, by pre- 
viously established ecclesiastical organizations. Promoters of 
such reforms have always had to work outside the churches, 
against both civil and ecclesiastical opposition, until they have 
made their reforms considerably popular; then the churches 



XIII : 13, 14 SECTION IV 295 

have taken them up. In our own country, neither the abolition 
of slavery, nor the abolition of alcoholic intemperance, nor the 
equal suffrage movement received any encouragement at the 
start from the churches as such. Both civil government and 
ecclesiastical government are conservative ; they tend to stand 
for the established order, be it good or bad ; and almost invari- 
ably they work together, and try to inspire the people with con- 
fidence in both. This is why St. John declares in this 12th 
verse that the second beast (ecclesiasticism) "causeth the earth 
{organized society) and them which dwell therein to worship 
the beast {civil government), whose deadly wound was 
healed." The healing of the "deadly wound" is commented 
upon under verse 3 of this chapter. 

Verses 13, 14 "And he doeth great wonders, so that he maketh fire 
come down from heaven on the earth in the sight of men, and deceiveth 
them that dwell on the earth by means of those miracles which he had 
power to do in the sight of the beast." 

Deut. 13:1-3 "If there arise among you a prophet, or a dreamer of 
dreams, and giveth thee a sign or a wonder, and the sign or the wonder 
come to pass, whereof he spake unto thee, saying, Let us go after other 
gods, which thou hast not known, and let us serve them; thou shalt not 
hearken unto the words of that prophet, or that dreamer of dreams: for 
the Lord your God proveth you, to know whether ye love the Lord your 
God with all your heart and with all your soul." 

2 Thess. 2:9 "Even him, whose coming is after the work of Satan, 
with all power and signs and lying wonders." 

St. John himself once asked our Lord to allow him to make 
fire come down from heaven on those who would not receive 
them. Our Lord replied: "Ye know not what manner of 
spirit ye are of". In these words Jesus rebuked the presumptu- 
ous disposition on the part of ecclesiastics and other men to 
judge and act for God. Ecclesiastics are prone to make this 
attempt, and in so doing they disobey the injunction: "Dearly 
beloved, avenge not yourselves, but rather give place unto 
wrath (divine love, the divine nature)*: for it is written, Ven- 



See Note 5, of the Introduction. 



296 REVELATION INTERPRETED xill : 13, 14 

geance (judgment) is mine; I will repay (make even), saith 
the Lord." Despite such Scriptural teaching as this, some 
churches have openly claimed to be the official dispensers of 
wrath from God. This is especially true of the Papacy, but 
many other religious organizations have not been wanting in 
like practices. Probably the false claim of ecclesiastics that 
they have the right and the ability to curse people in the name 
and by the authority of God is what is referred to by the words, 
"He maketh fire come down from heaven on the earth in the 
sight of men." The authority and power of the church often 
has been so wielded against both individuals and groups "of men 
as to utterly derange their affairs, and even bring them to 
death ; so that it appeared that the church was able to make 
good its claim ; and many times it has succeeded in inducing 
the great majority to so believe, — all those, in fact, who did 
not have discernment enough to see that it was the power of 
the devil, and not the power of God, which was being wielded. 
Did space permit, it would be instructive to recount from his- 
tory some of the terribly destructive works and judgments 
wrought by ecclesiasticisms in the sight of men, claiming that 
they were administering God's consuming fire. 

By the use of hypnotism, and other agencies of the carnal 
mind, ecclesiastics have been able to do many "wonderful" 
things in the line of curing sickness, claiming to act by the 
power of Christ, and perhaps believing that they were so doing, 
although it was not the divine Mind that they were using. 

By means of the remarkable hold which religious hier- 
archies have been able to gain over their members, and by 
means of their seeming wonderful success in enforcing their 
judgments, and by means of such false miracles as are above 
mentioned, all done in the sight of the civil authorities, and 
often partly by their aid, these hierarchies (the second beast) 
have "deceived them that dzvell on the earth" (verse 4) a great 
many times ; and so have made men believe that their power 
was divine, and have caused men to reverence them accord- 
ingly. And so, when these ecclesiasticisms have said "to them 



XIII: 14, 15 SECTION IV 297 



that dwell on the earth, that they should make an image to the 
beast, which had the wound by a sword, and did live" (that is, 
the civil government), men have been very prone to obey the 
ecclesiastics. 

The question arises, What does it mean to "make an image 
to the beast?" This quoted phrase does not give the meaning 
of the original Greek in idiomatic English. It should be, make 
a likeness to the beast; that is, make an image of the beast. 
(The Greek is, "poiesai eikona tg therip." Students of Greek 
will recall that after words signifying likeness the Greek idiom 
is to use a noun or pronoun in the dative case, where the 
English idiom is to use the preposition "of", followed by the 
objective.) 

"The beast which had a wound by the sword, and did live" , 
as already signified, symbolizes the authority and power which 
is administered by civil government, but which human sense 
supposes to emanate from God and to be sanctioned by Him. 
Here, for instance, is the foundation of the idea of "the divine 
right of kings."' Among many peoples the emperor or the 
state stands explicitly or by implication for the supreme power, 
or virtually for God. In other words, many peoples have 
formed their idea of God from their observance of the ways 
of human government, especially in the case of nations where 
church and state have been united, as was the case with most 
nations until a comparatively recent time. In the earlier cen- 
turies, the nations of Christendom were no exception to this 
rule. This disposition on the part of people to regard God as 
the apotheosis of the state has been distinctly fostered and 
encouraged by the state itself in its capacity as the adminis- 
trator of religion, or by ecclesiastical organizations virtually at 
one with the state, though having an organization more or less 
separate. Thus has the Worldly Church caused "them that 
dwell on the earth", the worldly-minded, to form in imagina- 
tion a "beast-like", an enlarged man-like, or anthropomorphic 
sense of God. And the Worldly Church has had power to 
cause the worldly-minded to look upon this false sense of God 



298 REVELATION INTERPRETED XIII : 16, 17 

as real, to regard it as alive, and as having power "both to 
speak, and to cause that as many as would not worship the 
image of the beast (the anthropomorphic God, supposed to be 
changeable and subject to human passions) should be killed". 
Unnumbered thousands, if not millions, of people have been 
put to death because they would not accept the idea of God, 
and of His ways with men, which was considered orthodox by 
the human government under which they were living. 

Verses 16, 17 "And he causeth all, both small and great, rich and 
poor, free and bond, to receive a mark in their right hand, or in their 
foreheads: and that no man might buy or sell, save he that had the 
mark, or the name of the beast, or the number of his name/'* 

Civil governments, in all ages, have been prone to grant 
special commercial privileges to their own citizens, or to those 
who would swear loyalty to them, and have been prone to cut 
off commercial privileges from those who were not citizens, 
and especially from those who were known not to regard the 
established civil government with favor. Ecclesiastics have 
often used their power and influence to support civil govern- 
ments in this position ; and especially did the Roman hierarchy 
of the Dark Ages and Middle Ages thus cooperate with the 
civil authorities of western Europe. "To receive a mark in the 
right hand" , is to be loyal in one's deeds to a given government, 
however one may feel inwardly ; while to receive a mark "in 
the forehead" ', is to be loyal in thought, as well as in deed. "To 
have the mark of the beast", is to wear a uniform, or some 
badge, prescribed by a given government. "To have the name 
of the beast", is to be a citizen of a given government. To 
have "the number of his name" is to be working under a num- 
bered license issued by the civil authorities, or to wear some 
prescribed number, or other distinctive mark. 

* Mr. Rawson suggests that the "mark in the right hand" is the 
hard, horny character of the hand of the unspiritual, and that the 
"mark in the forehead" is the hard metallic look in the eyes of the 
worldly minded. 



XIII : 18 SECTION IV 299 

One of the first marks of decadence of early Christianity 
was the setting up of the claim that none except the priests 
should heal the sick. 

Verse 18 "Here is wisdom. Let him that hath understanding count 
the number of the beast: for it is the number of a man; and his num- 
ber is six hundred threescore and six." 

I have seen at least five different explanations of this num- 
ber 666. The most probable seems to be that given in the com- 
ment on verse 16 of chapter I,* namely, that this number repre- 
sents the numerical value of the letters of the Greek he phren, 
meaning "the lower mind", or "mortal mind". Another plausi- 
ble one is the following: St. John was a Jew, and he was 
writing to Jewish Christians, who had been brought up as 
Jews. Among the Jews, seven was the number of complete- 
ness, and six, being short of seven, was a symbol of incom- 
pleteness. Hence, among the Jews, the number six was a 
number of evil omen, as the number thirteen is among people 
of Christendom, though for a different reason. Hence, the 
number 666 suggested to the Jewish mind the thought of an 
evil omen to a triple degree. In this chapter, St. John has 
already pointed out that civil government, especially the 
heathen Roman Empire and its civil successors, is a very cor- 
rupt institution and a great hindrance to liberty and spiritual 
growth. Civil government is human in its character, and so 
is typified by "a man", especially as, in St. John's time, a man, 
the Roman Emperor, was at the head of all civil government, 
and practically stood for it. Hence, St. John concludes his 
arraignment of corrupt and tyrannical human government by 
applying to it as an ephitet the most evil omen that he could 
think of, the number 666. 

The Jews used the letters of the Hebrew alphabet as signs 
for numbers, each letter having a definite numerical value. 
The title of Nero as Emperor of Rome, being written in 



See page 52. 



300 REVELATION INTERPRETED XIII : 18 

Hebrew, and the value of the several Hebrew letters in the 
title being added together, the sum is 666. The Greeks used 
the letters of their alphabet to express numbers in the same 
manner that the Jews did. One of the Greek adjectives, mean- 
ing Roman, was the adjective Latinos, sometimes spelled 
Latcinos. If the numerical value of the Greek letters in the 
latter spelling be added together, the sum is 666. This latter 
explanation might be especially plausible, were it not for the 
fact that the adjective Latinos was little used in St. John's 
time, and the spelling Lateinos is comparatively rare. In the 
New Testament, the adjective Romaikos (as nearly as the 
English alphabet will serve to transliterate the Greek) is uni- 
formly used for Roman. St. John evidently saw and prophe- 
sied much farther ahead than the reign of Nero; so it is 
improbable that he would use the number 666 as applying to 
Nero alone. Other explanations that I have seen are even 
more improbable than the two last mentioned. So, either the 
explanation that 666 is the numerical value of the Greek he 
phrcn, meaning "the lower mind", or that it is merely the sign 
of an evil omen, is more likely the correct one, either of these 
having that universal application which the nature of the 
prophecy in its farreaching extent calls for. 



SECTION IV 301 



THE VIOLATION OF LIBERTY 

A Sin of the Beasts 

It has been noted above that civil governments are inclined 
to restrict commercial privileges more or less to their own 
citizens. Ecclesiasticisms are even more inclined than are 
civil governments to restrict certain spiritual and certain semi- 
commercial privileges connected with their work to their own 
members, and especially to members in favor with the officials 
in control of their affairs. It may be doubted whether civil 
governments are ever ethically justified in imposing such com- 
mercial restrictions. At any rate, it may be safely asserted 
that they are often imposed when there is no ethical justifica- 
tion. Such restrictions tend strongly to interdict the brother- 
hood of man, and to prevent the development throughout the 
human race of that spirit of universal and impersonal love 
which will do away with tyranny, selfishness, bigotry, strife, 
and many other evils. Ecclesiasticisms are doubtless justified 
in prescribing rules and regulations as to who shall represent 
them in speaking, writing and teaching; but they are not justi- 
fied in persecuting those outside their membership who do not 
agree with them ; and when it comes to placing restrictions as 
to who shall receive the sacraments, etc., they are assuming 
authority which Christ probably never delegated to a human 
organization. All such restrictions tend to prevent the consum- 
mation of human brotherhood, and the exemplification of the 
words of St. Paul, who declares that God "hath made of one 
blood all nations of men for to dwell on all the face of the 
earth." In churches, certain restrictions are necessary, but 
the tendency should be to avoid them, and to regard them with 
suspicion, rather than to multiply them or more rigidly enforce 
them. Restrictions are human, not divine. There are no divi- 
sions, and no limitations, in truth. 

The following contrast of ecclesiasticism (the second beast) 
with true religion will be found illuminating : 



302 REVELATION INTERPRETED 



ECCLESIASTICISM VERSUS RELIGION 

The tendency with all human movements organized in the 
name of religion, especially if closely organized, is to substi- 
tute ecclesiasticism for religion. The two may be justly con- 
trasted as follows : 

Ecclesiasticism cuts men off for non-conformity in doctrine 
and practice. Religion leaves the ninety and nine who are safe 
within the fold and goes forth to seek and save that which is 
lost, and seeks until it finds. 

Ecclesiasticism is a judge, casting men out and down for 
breaking laws, whether human or divine. Religion forgiveth 
unto seventy times seven and has more joy over one sinner that 
repenteth than over ninety and nine just persons that need no 
repentance. 

Ecclesiasticism views with suspicion for an indefinite 
period, and keeps in the far corners of its province, those who 
have transgressed its regulations, even though they are willing 
to forego that transgression. Religion seeth the returning 
prodigal afar off and killeth for him the fatted calf and putteth 
the best robe on him and giveth him the honor of a son. 

Ecclesiasticism is on the watch, and peers around to see if 
it can discover evidence of non-conformity. Religion "thinketh 
no evil, rejoiceth not in iniquity, but rejoiceth in the truth." 

Ecclesiasticism casts men out for provocation small or 
great. Religion is a fisher of men. Having gotten hold of 
them, it keeps hold of them, even though, time and again, it is 
obliged to give them plenty of line and let them run away with 
the bait, each time reeling them in again, until, at last, they are 
safely landed within the Kingdom. 

Ecclesiasticism, represses and hedges about. Religion 
declares that "where the spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty," 
and cries, "Stand fast in the liberty wherewith Christ hath 
made you free." 

Ecclesiasticism makes conformity to the church law a mat- 
ter of even greater importance than conformity to the moral 



SECTION IV 303 



law. It "pays tithe of mint, anise and cumin, and neglects the 
weightier matters of mercy, judgment and faith." Religion 
is not a stickler about laws, but says : "Thy sins are forgiven 
thee ; go and sin no more." 

Ecclesiasticism makes regulations, repressing and limiting 
spiritual activities. Religion commands: "Preach, saying, 
The Kingdom of heaven is at hand. Heal the sick, cleanse the 
lepers, raise the dead, cast out devils ; freely ye have received, 
freely give ;" and to him who neglects to obey this command 
because he is "afraid" of ecclesiastical condemnation or for 
any other reason, and so "hides his talent in the earth," religion 
saith: "Take the talent from him, and give it unto him that 
hath ten talents ; for to every one that hath shall be given, and 
from him that hath not shall be taken away even that which he 
hath." 

Ecclesiasticism would* rule its adherents with man-made 
regulations "after the traditions of men and not after Christ;" 
but religion saith to the ecclesiastics : "Woe unto you, scribes 
and Pharisees, hypocrites ! for ye shut up the Kingdom of 
heaven against men; for ye neither go in yourselves, neither 
suffer ye them that are entering to go in." 

Ecclesiasticism is often sincere, and its sincerity can be 
respected, but it is full of misguided zeal. Religion wrote the 
thirteenth chapter of First Corinthians, commencing: "Though 
I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, and have not 
love, I am become as sounding brass, or a tinkling cymbal. 
. . . Love suffereth long, and is kind . . . beareth 
all things, endureth all things. Love never faileth!' 

Saul, "breathing out threatenings and slaughter," as he 
started for Damascus to arrest the Christians, was an eccle- 
siastic; Paul, taking Christianity out of the narrow trammels 
of Judaism, with its rules, forms, customs, and ceremonies, 
and giving it freely to the world, was a man of religion. Christ 
had set him free from ecclesiasticism. 

It is the attempt at repressing the religious activities and 
utterances of men that gives ecclesiasticism its hold, filling 



304 REVELATION INTERPRETED 

organizations, which are intended to serve religion, with suspi- 
cion, heresy hunting, hatred, unjust condemnation, misunder- 
standings, and strife, ever and anon violating the law of Chris- 
tian love and manifesting instead the activities of satan. Con- 
structive work fulfills the purpose of a religious organization ; 
attempts at repression pervert its activities and their effects. 
Nothing but love is the fulfilling of the law. 

The problem of human misgovernment in church and state 
is directly traceable to misgovernment in the mentalities of 
human individuals. Were it not for varying degrees of 
ignorance on the part of all members of the human race, and 
were not the higher natures of the vast majority of humans 
suppressed by their lower natures, civil and ecclesiastical mis- 
government would be impossible. The first beast (the false 
sense of reality and value), and the second beast (super- 
stition, or a misplaced sense of 'the source of power and 
authority), do their work, first of all, on the field of each 
human mentality. The root of the activity of these beasts in 
personal consciousness is "the dragon", general mortal belief, 
"the devil and satan." 

Each person needs to be even more watchful to subdue 
these beasts within than to keep free from domination by 
their magnified activities in the world without. In fact, he 
who has become free from their inward domination cannot 
and will not be dominated by them outwardly. He will sooner 
suffer physical death, if necessary. At any cost, he will keep 
his name written in the Lamb's book of life, and so will have 
his part in the first resurrection. 



NOTES BY THE READER 305 



306 NOTES BY THE READER 



REVISED TRANSLATION AND SUGGEST- 
IVE PARAPHRASE 



SECTION IV 

THE WOMAN, THE DRAGON AND THE BEASTS 

Chapter XI 

A Further Revelation from the Spirit of Prophecy 



Amended Revised Version 

And there was opened 
the temple of God that is m 
heaven; and there was seen 
in his temple the ark of his 
covenant; and there fol- 
lowed lightnings, and 
voices, and thunders, and an 
earthquake, and great hail. 



Suggestive Paraphrase 
And from higher consciousness 
there was given me another vision of 
the impending and continuing strug- 
gle between good and evil, in which 
I foresaw the activity of the Holy 
Spirit and of the seeming power of 
evil, and the great upheaval in the 
human realm resulting from the con- 
flict. 



Chapter XII. Warfare of the Spiritual Church With Satan 
The Spiritual Church 



i xA.nd a great sign was seen 
in heaven ; a woman arrayed 
with the sun, and the moon 
under her feet, and upon 

2 her head a crown of twelve 
stars ; and she was with 
child : and she crieth out. 
travailing in birth, and in 
pain to be delivered. 



And a wonderful vision appeared 
to me, — humanity's love for Truth, 
reflecting the divine Mind, and up- 
held by the Christ-consciousness, 
and made brilliant with all spiritual 
ideas; and I saw humanity's love oi 
Truth ready to bring the divine idea 
into the realm of human experience. 



Satan, the Devil, Impersonal Evil 



3 And there was seen an- 
other sign in heaven ; and 
behold, a great red dragon, 
having seven heads and ten 
horns, and upon his head^ 

4 seven diadems. And his 
tail draweth the third part 
of the stars of heaven, and 
did cast them to the earth : 
and the dragon stood be- 
fore the woman which was 
about to be delivered, that 
when she was delivered, he 
might devour her child. 



And there appeared another as- 
tounding vision, — that of humanity's 
love of evil, — mortal mind, present- 
ing seven phases (opposing the seven 
Spirits of God), crowned with the 
asserted authority of evil, and 
also claiming power to break the ten 
commandments. And the influence 
of this mortal monster of false be- 
lief will keep drawing into backslid- 
ing many of those struggling to- 
ward Truth : and I saw this mortal 
monster ready to attack and destroy, 
if possible, the love-of -Truth's child, 
as soon as it appeared among men. 

307 



308 



REVELATION INTERPRETED XII : 5-11 



Humanity's Love of Truth Brings the Christ to Human Sense 



Amended Revised Version 

5 And she was delivered of 
a son, a man child, who is 
to rule all the nations with 
a rod of iron : and her 
child was caught up unto 
God, and unto his throne. 

6 And the woman fled into 
the wilderness, where she 
hath a place prepared of 
God, that there they may 
nourish her a thousand two 
hundred and threescore 
days. 



Suggestive Paraphrase 
And humanity's love of Truth 
brought into human consciousness the 
Christ, who was and is to rule all 
nations with an inflexible law: and 
the infantile appearing of the Christ 
was protected by Mind with its 
power. And humanity's love of 
Truth, the true church, will dwell in 
spiritual consciousness, apart from 
the world, resting confidently in God, 
and fed by his angels or ideas, dur- 
ing the apparent ascendency of satan. 



Human Understanding is Purified from False Belief, the Lower 
Nature Remaining in Evidence 



And there was war in 
heaven ; Michael and his 
angels going forth to war 
with the dragon; and the 
dragon warred and his 
angels ; and they prevailed 
not, neither was their place 
found any more in heaven. 
And the great dragon was 
cast down, the old serpent, 
he that is called the Devil 
and Satan, the deceiver of 
the whole world ; he was 
cast down to the earth, and 
his angels were cast down, 
with him. 



And I saw that there will be strife 
in the mental realm: the militant 
Christ and His militant ideas fight- 
ing against militant evil and its ideas ; 
but militant evil will not prevail, and 
its claim to reality and power will be 
rejected from human understanding. 
Satan, general false belief, which de- 
ceives the whole world of humanity, 
and all evil thoughts, will thence- 
forth tempt men only through their 
lower natures, against their under- 
standing of what is real and desir- 
able. 



Rejoicing Among the Spiritually Minded Over the Victory 



io And I heard a great voice 
in heaven, saying, Now is 
come the salvation, and the 
power, and the kingdom of 
our God, and the authority 
of his Christ : for the ac- 
cuser of our brethren is 
cast down, which accuseth 
them before our God day. 

ii and night.- And they over- 
came him through (because 
of) the blood of the Lamb, 
and through (because of) 



And I foresaw the time of victory 
and I seemed to hear the Holy Spirit 
rejoicing, saying, Now is come into 
realization salvation, and strength, 
and the kingdom of our God, and the 
power of his Christ : for the accuser 
and deceiver of our brethren is cast 
down, which, in the very face of 
Truth, was misrepresenting them 
continually. And they overcame as- 
sertive evil by living the life of 
Christ, and by the message to which 
they bore testimony; and in their 



XII : 12-18 TEXT AND PARAPHRASE 



309 



Amended Revised Version 
the word of their testimony ; 
and they loved not their 
life' even unto death. 
12 Therefore rejoice, O heav- 
ens, and ye that dwell in 
them. Woe for the earth 
and for the sea : because 
the devil is gone down unto 
you, having great wrath, 
knowing that he hath but a 
short time. 



Suggestive Paraphrase 
love of true life they did not shrink 
from mortal death. Therefore re- 
joice, ye whose lives are established 
in spiritual consciousness. But woe 
to men whose lives are still grounded 
in material sense, for enraged evil is 
stirred up among them, greatly ag- 
gravated, because it seems to know 
that it will soon be destroyed utter- 
ly. 



The Lower Elements in Human Nature Make War Against the 

Higher 



13 And when the dragon 
saw that he was cast down 
to the earth, he persecuted 
the woman which brought 

14 forth the man child. And 
there was given to the 
woman the two wings of 
the great eagle, that she 
might fly into the wilder- 
ness unto her place where 
she is nourished for a time, 
and times, and half a time, 
and from the face of the 

15 serpent, And the serpent 
cast out of his mouth after 
the woman water* as a 
river, that he might cause 
her to be carried away by 

16 the stream. And the earth 
helped the woman, and the 
earth opened up her mouth, 
and swallowed up the river 
which the dragon cast out 

17 of his mouth. And the 
dragon waxed wroth with 
the woman, and went away 
to make war with the rest 
of her seed, which keep the 
commandments of God, and 

18 hold the testimony of Jesus ; 
and he stood upon the sand 
of the sea. 



And when assertive evil is cast 
wholly into the lower nature, it will 
do all it can to overthrow humanity's 
love of Truth which brought the 
Christ into human consciousness. 
But to the love of Truth, the spirit- 
ual factor in human consciousness, 
will be given the truth and love of 
the Holy Spirit, by which it may 
dwell in the spiritual realm, apart 
from the world, and be preserved 
during the continuance of satan-time 
from the attack of assertive evil. 
And assertive evil will try to over* 
whelm the truth-loving portion of 
humanity with a horde of ungodly 
men under its influence. But this 
horde of ungodly men will fight 
among themselves and many of them 
will be thus slain, and many others 
will be civilized and converted to at 
least nominal Christianity, and so the 
attack of assertive evil ■ upon the 
godly will be largely neutralized. And 
assertive evil will still be enraged 
against the love of Truth, and will 
continue to make war against those 
who love Truth, which keep the com- 
mandments of God, and cling to the 
teachings of Christ Jesus. And as- 
sertive evil will continue to take its 
stand in the midst of all the lower 
activities of human nature. 



On "water," see chap. 17 :15. 



310 



REVELATION INTERPRETED XIII : 1-7 



Chapter XIII. The Struggle With Human Domination 



The Ten-horned Beast. Worldly Government 



Amended Revised Version 
i And I saw a beast com- 
ing up out of the sea, having 
ten horns and seven heads, 
and on his horns ten dia- 
dems, and upon his heads 

2 names of blasphemy. And 
the beast which I saw was 
like unto a leopard, and his 
feet were as the feet of a 
bear, and his mouth as the 
mouth of a lion : and the 
dragon gave him his power, 
and his throne, and great 

3 authority. And I saw one 
of his heads as though it 
had been smitten unto death ; 
and his death-stroke was 
healed; and the whole earth 
wondered after the beast ; 

4 and they worshipped the 
dragon, because he gave his 
authority unto the beast; 
and they worshipped the 
beast, saying, Who is like 
unto the beast? and who is 

5 able to war with him? and 
there was given to him a 
mouth speaking great things 
and blasphemies ; and there 
was given to him authority 
to continue forty and two 

6 months. And he opened his 
mouth for blasphemies 
against God, to blaspheme 
his name, and his taber- 
nacle, even them that dwell 

7 in the heaven, And it was 
given unto him to make war 
with the saints, and to over- 
come them : and there was 



Suggestive Paraphrase 
And I saw so-called civilization, civil 
government, so corrupt that it might 
better be called civil misgovern- 
ment, — springing up from barbarous 
and disorganized states of human so- 
ciety (which are even worse). And 
I saw worldly government as seven 
(all) great ungodly empires, and 
later as ten (all) ungodly kingdoms, 
— the seven empires making a blas- 
phemous assertion that they had 
power, whereas God alone has power. 
And I saw worldly government hav- 
ing the cruelty of a leopard, and 
the relentless cunning of a bear, and 
the savage power of a lion : and 
clothed with the power and position 
and authority of the dragon, "that 
old serpent, called the Devil and 
Satan."* And I saw that one of the 
ungodly empires will be destroyed; 
but worldly government will be re- 
habilitated ; and all the world will 
follow after it, wondering. And men 
will bow down in submission to mor- 
tal belief which gives power to 
worldly government : and they will 
submit to this misgovernment, say- 
ing, What authority is so great as 
the authority of human government? 
Who is able to stand against it? 
And worldly authority makes great 
boasts, and makes a blasphemous 
claim of power, either asserting that 
it is the only power, or claiming that 
its wicked and worldly deeds are au- 
thorized by God; and it will exer- 
cise its asserted power during the 
apparent ascendency of satan. And 
worldly government will often mock 
at the power of God, and will curse 
His name, and His church, and those 
who live in spiritual consciousness. 
And it will harass and kill those men 
who live godly lives ; and it will 



See Chap. 12 :9. 



XIII: 8-15 



TEXT AND PARAPHRASE 



311 



Amended Revised Version 
given to him authority over 
every tribe and people and 

8 tongue and nation. And all 
that dwell on the earth shall 
worship him, every one 
whose name hath not been 
written in the book of life 
of the Lamb that hath been 
slain from the foundation of 

9 the world. If any man hath 
io an ear, let him hear. If any 

man leadeth into captivity 
(is for) captivity, into cap- 
tivity he goeth : if any man 
shall kill with the sword, 
with the sword must he be 
killed. Here is the patience 
and the faith of the saints. 



Suggestive Paraphrase 
seem to have power over all kin- 
dreds and tongues and nations. And 
all inhabitants of the earth shall bow 
down in willing or unwilling submis- 
sion to worldly government, save 
only those who are wholly loyal to 
the life inculcated by the Christ, 
whose human representatives evil 
has always sought to crucify since 
the beginning of mortal sense. If 
any man has sufficient understanding 
to see the point of this message, let 
him not fail to govern his thought 
and live accordingly. He that would 
lead another into captivity to evil 
shall himself go into captivity to 
evil; and he that would kill through 
any form of evil shall himself die a 
moral, if not a physical, death, 
through that same form of evil. 
Knowing this, the godly can be pa- 
tient. 



The Two-horned Beast. The Worldly Church 



ii And I saw another beast 
coming up out of the earth ; 
and he had two horns like 
unto a lamb, and he spake 

12 as a dragon. And he exer- 
ciseth all the authority of 
the first beast in his sight. 
And he maketh the earth 
and them that dwell therein 
to worship the first beast, 
whose death-stroke was 

13 healed. And he doeth great 
signs, that he should even 
make fire to come down out 
of heaven upon the earth in 

14 the sight of men. And he 
deceiveth them that dwell 
on the earth by reason of 
the signs which it was given 
him to do in the sight of the 
beast; saying to them that 
dwell on the earth, that they 
should make an image of 
(to) the beast, who hath the 
stroke of the sword, and 

15 lived. And it was given 
unto him to give breath to 



And I saw that ecclesiastical mis- 
government, a worldly and ungodly 
church, will spring up in so-called 
civilized nations ; and this worldly 
church (in its different branches) 
will claim to have both the word and 
the works of Christ, though its voice 
is really the voice of the dragon 
(mortal sense). And the worldly 
church will be upheld by all the 
power of worldly government, and 
will cause those who dwell in mortal 
sense to bow in submission to worldly 
government, after its rehabilitation : 
and this worldly church will do 
things that will seem as marvelous as 
though fire came down from heaven 
in the sight of men, and will deceive 
the dwellers in material sense by 
means of the seeming wonders which 
it will accomplish in the presence of 
worldly government; and the worldly 
church (in its various branches) will 
cause the dwellers in material sense 
to form a false sense of God based 
upon their sense of worldly govern- 
ment, which was once nearly over- 



312 



REVELATION INTERPRETED XIII : 16-18 



Amended Revised Version 
it, even to the image of the 
beast, that the image of the 
beast should both speak, and 
cause that as many as 
should not worship the 
image of the beast should 

16 be killed. And he causeth 
all, the small and the great, 
and the rich and the poor, 
and the free and the bond, 
that there be given them a 
mark on their right hand, or 

17 upon their forehead ; and 
that no man should be able 
to buy or to sell, save he 
that hath the mark, even 
the name of the beast or 
the number of his name. 

18 Here is wisdom. He that 
hath understanding, let him 
count the number of the 
beast; for it is the number 
of a man : and his number 
is six hundred and sixty 
and six. 



Suggestive Paraphrase 
thrown, but was rehabilitated. And 
the worldly church will have power 
to endow with seeming life this false 
sense of God, so that it shall make 
strong claims for allegiance, and shall 
cause that as many as will not wor- 
ship this anthropomorphic idea of 
God shall be killed. And the worldly 
church will cause all men, small and 
great, rich and poor, free and bond, 
either to render outward submission 
and service, or inward allegiance, to 
worldly government (though a true, 
spiritual church would often do 
otherwise) ; so that it will come to 
pass that no man can carry on busi- 
ness, except he have a license from 
worldly government (no matter how 
corrupt and ungodly it is). Now here 
is the test of wisdom. Let him that 
has discernment note the character of 
worldly government : for it has the 
same character as mortal man by 
whom it is instituted : and that char- 
acter is well indicated by the num- 
ber 666, which is a number signify- 
ing apostasy from Christ. 



(Continued on Page 327.) 



NOTES BY THE READER 313 



314 NOTES BY THE READER 



SECTION V 
VISION OF CHRIST JUDGING THE WORLD 

(Chapter XIV) 

The vision opens with a view and a description of those 
who endure the test of temptation in the struggle between 
good and evil, and who survive the judgment described in the 
latter part of the chapter. 

Verses 1-5 "And I looked, and lo, a Lamb stood on the mount 
Sion, and with him an hundred forty and four thousand, having his 
Father's name written in their foreheads. And I heard a voice from 
heaven, as the voice of many waters, and as the voice of a great 
thunder: and I heard the voice of harpers harping zvith their harps: 
and they sung as it were a new song, before the throne, and before the 
four beasts, and the elders: and no man could learn that song but the 
hundred and forty and four thousand, which were redeemed from the 
earth. These are they which were not defiled zvith women; for they 
are virgins. These are they which follow the Lamb whithersoever he 
goeth. These were redeemed from among men, being the first fruits 
unto God and to the Lamb. And in their mouth was found no guile: 
for they are without fault before the throne of God." 

This description is very similar to the description of the 
redeemed in chapter 7, and probably indicates the same com- 
pany. The song which the redeemed are heard singing (verse 
3) is of such a spiritual nature that none except those spir- 
itually redeemed are able to understand or learn it. 

"These were redeemed from among men, being the first- 
fruits unto God and to the Lamb" (verse 4). They are prob- 
ably identical with those raised from the dead in the first 
resurrection (20:4-6). This may be the reason that they are 
spoken of as "first- fruits" 

315 



316 REVELATION INTERPRETED XIV: 8 

Verses 6, 7 "And I sazv another angel fly in the midst of heaven, 
having the everlasting gospel to preach unto them that dzvell on the 
earth, and to every nation, and kindred, and tongue, and people, saying 
with a loud voice, Fear God, and give glory to him; for the hour of his 
judgment is come: and worship him. that made heaven, and earth, and 
the sea, and the fountains of waters." 

In these verses, we are given a vision of an angel or mes- 
senger flying in the mental realm, having the everlasting Gospel 
to preach unto all mankind. This angel is doubtless intended 
by John to represent the Christ-idea acting as Spiritual Aspira- 
tion, his preaching commencing with the ministry of Jesus of 
Nazareth, and continuing until the end of matter and time. 
During all this time, this angel is proclaiming, 

"Fear God, and give glory to him; for the hour of his judgment is 
come: and worship him that made heaven, and earth, and the sea, and 
the fountains of waters." 

The spiritual heaven, and the spiritual earth, and the spir- 
itual sea, and the spiritual fountains of waters or sources of 
life, all of which are ideas of Mind, not forms of matter, with- 
out shapes, unpicturable, but knowable, are, of course, referred 
to. The judgment spoken of is not a grand final judgment, as 
many have inferred, but, like the judgment spoken of in the 
concluding verses of the 25th chapter of Matthew, and like 
the judgment described in verses 14-20 of this chapter (14), it 
is a continuing judgment of individuals and of the world, in 
which the ungodly are continually being punished, and in 
which error is continually being separated from truth, and 
the error destroyed. There is not an hour in the life of an 
individual, nor in the life of humanity as a whole, in which 
it is not true that "the hour of God's judgment is come" , or is 
at hand. "Now is the judgment of this world; now is the 
prince of this world cast out." John 12:31. 

In verses 8-1 1, there are announced two points or lines of 
conduct with regard to which men are to be judged; namely, 
as to whether or not they have part with or keep free from 



XIV: 8 SECTION V 317 



the wickedness of mental Babylon, and as to whether or not 
they "worship the beast and his image, and receive his mark in 
their foreheads, or in their hands/' 

Verse 8 "And there followed another angel, saying, Babylon is 
fallen, is fallen, that great city, because she made all nations drink of 
the wine of the wrath of her fornication." 

This angel is the Christ-mind as Spiritual Reason, Prin- 
ciple. 

The ancient city of Babylon, which was at the height of its 
power about 6oo B, C, was the embodiment of worldliness, 
superstition, tyranny, lust, sorcery, materialism, carnality, 
false doctrine, — the embodiment of all that was apostate to 
Spirit and Christ. Among the Jews, Babylon was the symbol 
of all the above evil influences. Hence, John, born a Jew, and 
writing to Christians most of whom had been born Jews, 
speaks of Babylon as "the great whore" (17:1). Rome, seated 
on seven hills (17:9), "that great city, which reigneth over 
the kings of the earth" (17:18), was the Babylon of John's 
day, and he foresaw that Rome would be the Babylon of the 
world for an indefinite period after his time. However, it 
js not primarily the material city of Rome that he prophesies 
against, but against mental Rome, against those evil influences 
mentioned above, which, from John's day to ours, have cen- 
tered at Rome, whether heathen or Papal. It is this mental 
Babylon, this mental Rome, which John declares, "is fallen, 
is fallen" (14:8, 18:2), and concerning which he exhorts: 
"Come out of her, my people, that ye be not partakers of her 
sins, and that ye receive not of her plagues" (18:4). He sees 
the Roman Babylon as fallen, that is, apostate from Truth and 
good, in his own time, and continuing in that condition for 
centuries, but he does not prophesy the destruction of this 
mental Babylon until near the end of the world. Let it here 
be reiterated, that this Roman Babylon is to be regarded as 
primarily mental, rather than as a material city. All people 
who are under the dominion of the set of mental influences 



318 REVELATION INTERPRETED XIV: 9-11 

above enumerated are under the dominion of the mental 
Roman Babylon, and are tributary to it, whether they are 
classed by men or by themselves as Catholic or Protestant, 
Jew or Christian Scientist. Those not under the dominion of 
these mental influences are not tributary to mental Babylon. 

Babylon may also be regarded as. "fallen" from the men- 
talities of those saints of God who have worked their way 
free from its trammels. 

Verses 9-1 1 "And the third angel followed them, saying, with a 
loud voice, if any man worship the beast and his image, and receiveth 
his mark in his forehead, or in his hand, the same shall drink of the 
wine of the wrath of God, which is poured out zvithout mixture into 
the cup of his indignation; and he shall be tormented with fire and 
brimstone in the presence of the holy angels, and in the presence of the 
Lamb: and the smoke of their torment ascendeth up for ever and ever: 
and they have no rest day or night, who worship the beast and his image, 
and whosoever receiveth the mark of his name." 

The third angel is the impersonal Christ as Executive Mind, 
Divine Will. 

The first half of verse 10 should be translated: 

He himself shall drink of the wine of the ardor (thumos) of God, 
which is prepared unmixed in the cup of his frenzy to save (orge). 

There seems to be no single English word that gives the 
correct sense of orge in this connection ; but the phrase frenzy 
to save adequately represents the force and degree, in media- 
torial consciousness, of the divine passion for good, which 
overcomes evil. The significance and meaning of the words 
thumos and orge is fully discussed in Note 4 of the Introduc- 
tion. 

"And he shall be tormented with fire and brimstone, in the presence 
of the holy Angels, and in the presence, of the Lamb." 

The sun, without in the least degree changing its normal 
activity, melts snow and ice, when they are exposed to its rays 
with sufficient directness. If the snow and ice were sentient, 
the melting process would probably seem painful to them, 



XIV: 9-11 SECTION V 319 

and it could be said that they were tormented in the presence 
of the sun and of its rays, — and this without thinking that 
the sun was cruel, or subject to anger or indignation, or that 
it purposely inflicted any suffering on the snow and ice. Like- 
wise, God is ever radiating divine love, through the Christ and 
through His angels (divine ideas) into the whole realm of 
consciousness, and never changes His activity in the least. If 
falsehood and evil are exposed to the activity of Love with 
sufficient directness, they are disintegrated and destroyed more 
or less gradually, and suffering attends the process, because 
ignorant and evil mentality has the claim of being sentient ; so 
it can be said that an evil mentality "shall be tormented . . . 
in the presence of the holy Angels, and in the presence of the 
Lamb" , — and this without thinking that either God, or the 
Christ, or the divine ideas, which are angels of God, are cruel, 
vindictive, indignant, or that they purposely or consciously 
inflict any suffering on evil mentality or evil-doers. How- 
ever, when mortal sense is exposed to the activity of divine 
Love, it is gradually burned and tormented, as though by fire, 
and smothered and choked, as though by brimstone. 

Weymouth, in his "New Testament in Modern Speech", 
translates the first clause of verse n, "And the smoke of their 
torment goes up until the Ages of the Ages" ; and in a footnote 
he comments as follows: "Torment. This noun also occurs 
in 9:5 and in 18:7, 10, 15. A noun, unlike a verb, (or time- 
word, as the Germans call it), does not indicate time. So, 
'the smoke of their torment' may mean that of pain endured 
once for all, and then at an end. There is nothing in this 
verse that necessarily implies an eternity of suffering. In a 
similar way, the word 'punishment' or 'correction' in Matt. 
25 46 gives in itself no indication of time. Compare Gen. 
19:28 and Jude 7."* 

The error of "beast-worship" has been fully discussed in 



* By the late R. F. Weymouth, M. A. D. Sect.. Fellow of University ( oh 
lege, London. His interesting translation of the New Testament is published 
by the Pilgrim Press (Congregational), Boston. 



320 REVELATION INTERPRETED XIV : 12, 13 

the Notes on chapter 13. It may be well to remark here, that 
to "worship the beast" is to love and be devoted to any human 
personality or organization, whether civil or ecclesiastical, in 
the same degree, or in the same unreserved way, that one loves 
God. To receive the mark of the beast, is to obey a personal, 
civil or ecclesiastical mandate instead of obeying God, when 
one believes that God calls him to do one thing, and a human 
sense calls him to do another. To obey what was believed to 
be the call of God, defying the opposing human mandate, has 
often meant confiscation of property, imprisonment, and even 
death. John foresaw that this would be the case, and so he 
wrote in verses 12 and 13: 

"Here is the patience of the saints: here are they that keep the com- 
mandments of God, and the faith of Jesus. And I heard a voice from 
heaven, saying unto me, Write, Blessed are the dead which die in the 
Lord from henceforth: yea, saith the Spirit, that they may rest from 
their labors: and their works do follow them." 

John thus declares that it is really better to die serving 
God, than to live at the price of serving the beast. An exam- 
ple, in modern times, of those who have not been "beast-wor- 
shipers" are the Quakers, who, in accordance with what they 
conceived to be obedience to God, refused to go to war at the 
behest of civil government, even though fined or imprisoned 
for their refusal. 

"The 'dead' are the living dead, who 'die in the Lord' only 
when they attain liberation from the sepulchre of the carnal 
body, ceasing then from their toil, but retaining the fruition 
of their good works."* However, it is not intended to sug- 
gest that anyone attains liberation from the carnal sense of 
body simply by physical death, but only by that absolute per- 
ception of and service to Spirit which overcomes the sense of 
matter, resulting in dying to the carnal sense, but being "alive 
unto God." 



"The Apocalypse Unsealed." 



XIV: 14-20 SECTION V 321 

Verses 14-20 "And I looked, and behold a white cloud, and upon 
the cloud one sat like unto the Sou of man, having on his head a golden 
crown, and in his hand a sharp sickle. And another angel came out of 
the temple, crying with a loud voice to him that sat on the cloud, Thrust 
in thy sickle, and reap: for the time is come for thee to reap; for the 
harvest of the earth is ripe. And he that sat on the cloud thrust in 
his sickle on the earth; and the earth zvas reaped. And another angel 
came out of the temple which is in heaven, he also having a sharp sickle 
And another angel came out from the altar, which had power over fire ; 
and cried with a loud cry to him that had the sharp sickle, saying, Thrust 
in thy sharp sickle, and gather the clusters of the vine of the earth; for 
her grapes are fully ripe. And the angel thrust in his sickle into the 
earth, and gathered the vine of the earth, and cast it into the great 
winepress of the wrath of God. And the winepress zvas trodden with- 
out the city, and blood came out of the winepress, even unto the horse 
bridles, by the space of a thousand and six hundred furlongs." 

In these verses, we have a vision of the Christ-mind judg- 
ing the world, essentially parallel to the vision in Matthew 
25:31-46. The different angels here spoken of are to be 
regarded as still other activities or phases of the Christ-mind, 
the Holy Spirit. The angel of verses 14 and 16 seems to sym- 
bolize Spiritual Intuition; that of verse 15, Divine Love; that 
of verses 17 and 19, Perception of Reality, Truth; that of 
verse 18, Perception of Substance, Spirit. The four angels 
of this passage, with the three mentioned in the earlier por- 
tion of the chapter, will be recognized as identical with the 
Angels of the Seven Churches, the Angels of the Trumpets, 
and the Angels of the Vials. 

As already remarked, the judgment spoken of in verses 
14-20 constantly goes on to the end of the world. The Christ 
consciousness separates the good from the evil, and gathers 
the wheat (the good) into his garner, but the chaff (the evil, 
error) he burns with destroying fire (Matthew 3 :I2 )- Men 
are punished as long as they continue in ungodliness, and even 
their worldly lives (physical lives in this belief) are destroyed 
during the judging process, so that blood is flowing as described 
in verse 20; but the mentalities of even the most wicked live 



322 REVELATION INTERPRETED XIV: 20 

on in a world to come, until finally they are redeemed from 
error and sin, and "put on Christ." "God will have all men 
to be saved, and to come into the knowledge of the truth." 
"As in Adam all die (are dead in trespasses and sins), so in 
Christ shall all be made alive/' 

The phrase "wrath of God" at the close of verse 20 should 
be ardor of God, the Greek noun being thumos. 

"The horses" of verse 20 are probably the same symbols as 
are employed in chapter 6, the white horse, the red horse, the 
black horse, and the dun horse. This 14th chapter represents 
the impersonal Christ idea, "the white horse and his rider", 
as gaining the victory over those mental activities and in- 
fluences which are symbolized in the 6th chapter by "the red 
horse and his rider", "the black horse and his rider", "the 
dun horse and his rider", and are symbolized in the 14th chap- 
ter as "the harvest of the earth" and "the vine of the earth". 
The severity of the conflict is symbolized by blood flowing, so 
deep that it reaches to the bridles of the horses. The last 
phrase of verse 20 is correctly translated in the Revised Ver- 
sion, "as far as a thousand and six hundred furlongs!' This 
phrase is probably indicative of the influence of Greek phil- 
osophy upon John's thought, the character of which, however, 
is not impaired thereby. In the Apocalypse, "the sun" is used 
as the symbol of divine Mind, Spirit. Hence, to John's 
thought, the Greek adjective heliakos, meaning pertaining to 
the sun, solar, would be equivalent in meaning to the word 
spiritual. The early Christian disciples had a concept of what 
they termed "the spiritual body", evidently meaning thereby 
the body of right ideas, synonymous with the spiritual man, 
who is, as "Science and Health" expresses it (p. 475), "the 
compound idea of God, including all right ideas." St. Paul 
declares: "There is a spiritual body" (1 Cor. 15:44), and it 
is likely that he derived this form of expression from his 
familiarity with Greek literature, — a fact clearly indicated in 
the circumstance of his quoting from one of the Greek poets 
in his famous speech to the Athenians on Mars Hill (Acts 



XIV : 20 SECTION V 323 

17:28); but Paul uses the Greek soma pneumatikon for 
"spiritual body", though soma heliakon was equally com- 
mon among the Greek philosophers. John does not use this 
expression, but probably had it in mind when he wrote the 
Greek equivalent of "as far as a thousand and six hundred 
furlongs", since the numerical value of the Greek letters to 
soma heliakon is 1600, which would thus become the numerical 
symbol of the consciousness of the spiritual man. There 
seems no other way of accounting for the use of the specific 
number 1600 in this connection; and the evidence that this 
is the correct interpretation will be found to be still more con- 
vincing if the reader will refer to verse 16, chapter 21, where 
it is stated that 12000 stadia (furlongs) is the measure of 
the spiritual city, the spiritual consciousness. Now the Jews 
reckoned jy 2 stadia to the mile (though the Romans reckoned 
8). Dividing 12000 by jy 2 we get exactly 1600, the symbol 
for the spiritual consciousness as above. In verse 17 of chap- 
ter 21, John states that 144 cubits is the measure or symbol 
of the angelic or spiritual man, but this need not be regarded 
as inconsistent with the above exposition, since it is character- 
istic of the Apocalypse to employ numerous symbols for the 
same idea. We have noted, for instance, no less than five 
numerical symbols for satan-time. The number 144 probably 
came to be used as a symbol for the spiritual consciousness in 
the following manner. The sun and its rays constitute all 
material light. Among the Greeks, the sun was symbolized 
by the letter alpha, the numerical value of which is 1, and the 
rays of the sun were spoken of as he doxa, the numerical value 
of which is 143. Therefore 144 is the numerical value for the 
sun and its rays, and is therefore the symbolical number for 
Mind and its ideas, that is, for the total of the spiritual con- 
sciousness, which is the angelic man.* 

The literal idea which we are to take from verse 20 is prob- 
ably as follows : 

*With acknowledgments to Mr. Pryse for important suggestions. 



324 REVELATION INTERPRETED XIV: 20 



And the separation between truth and error takes place 
outside of the cognizance of pure spiritual consciousness, where 
nothing but harmony is known, although that consciousness is 
the agent of the casting out and destruction of error ; and dur- 
ing the process, the whole realm of human consciousness is 
suffused with suffering, as far as, but not entering into, the 
spiritual factor in consciousness. 

The spiritual factor in consciousness rules, controls, and 
circumscribes the lower activities of human nature, even before 
it destroys them. Hence, this spiritual factor is here spoken 
of as a "bridle", or "bridles" , for the red, black, and dun 
"horses', which symbolize these lower activities. Hence, both 
the phrase "unto the bridles of the horses", and the phrase 
"as far as a thousand and six hundred furlongs", indicate 
that the suffering attending the separation of error from truth 
is to be kept outside of spiritual consciousness, thus reiterat- 
ing the first clause of the verse, "and the wine-press was 
trodden without the city." 



NOTES BY THE READER 325 



326 NOTES BY THE READER 



REVISED TRANSLATION AND SUGGEST- 
IVE PARAPHRASE 

SECTION V 



THE HARVEST ANGELS 

Chapter XIV 
The Rejoicing of the Faithful 



Amended Revised Version 

i And I saw, and behold, 
the Lamb standing on the 
mount Zion, and with him 
a hundred and forty and 
four thousand, having his 
name and the name of his 
Father, written on their 

2 foreheads. And I heard a 
voice from heaven, as the 
voice of many waters, and 
as the voice of a great thun- 
der : and the voice which I 
heard was as the voice of 
harpers harping with their 

3 harps : and they sing as it 
were a new song before the 
throne, and before the four 
living creatures and the 
elders : and no man could 
learn the song save the hun- 
dred and forty and four 
thousand, even they that had 
been purchased out of the 

4 earth. These are they which 
were not defiled with wom- 
en ; for they are virgins. 
These are they which follow 
the Lamb whithersoever he 
goeth. These were pur- 
chased from among men, to 
be the firstfruits unto God 

5 and unto the Lamb. And 
in their mouth was found 
no lie : they are without 
blemish. 



Suggestive Paraphrase 
And I saw the Christ exalted, and 
with him the complete number of the 
redeemed, having God in their un- 
derstanding. And there was great 
rejoicing: and the redeemed sang a 
new song of gladness in the presence 
of God, and of the Christ, and of 
the elders: and this song of rejoicing 
was of a spiritual nature, so that 
none could understand its meaning 
or learn it, save those who had been 
converted from material to spiritual 
sense. These are they who had never 
yielded to the defiling impulses of 
the flesh, and who follow where 
Truth leads. These were redeemed 
from among men, being the first who 
came unto God and to the Christ. 
And they cover no deceit or evil : 
for they are without fault by the 
test of Principle. 

327 



328 



REVELATION INTERPRETED XIV : 6-11 



The Christ as Spiritual Aspiration 



Amended Revised Version 

6 And I saw another angel 
flying in mid-heaven, hav- 
ing the eternal gospel to 
proclaim unto them that 
dwell on the earth, and un- 
to every nation and tribe 

7 and tongue and people ; and 
he saith with a great voice, 
Fear God, and give him 
glory; for the hour of his 
judgment is come: and wor- 
ship him that made the 
heaven and the earth and 
sea and fountains of waters. 



Suggestive Paraphrase 
And I saw the Christ-mind as 
Spiritual Aspiration, extending itself 
in the mental realm, making known 
the everlasting facts of good to hu- 
manity, to every nation, and kin- 
dred, and tongue, and people, pro- 
claiming insistently, Reverence God, 
and give glory to Him; for the time 
for discrimination and separation 
between truth and error is now and 
always at hand ; and worship Mind, 
which thought into being and sus- 
tains His ideas, all the manifesta- 
tions of Life. 



The Christ as Spiritual Reason 



And another, a second an- 
gel, followed, saying, Fallen, 
fallen is Babylon the great, 
which hath made all the na- 
tions to drink of the wine of 
the ardor (wrath) of her 
fornication. 



And the Christ-mind as Spiritual 
Reason revealed that material and 
worldly belief, the great mental habi- 
tation of men, is fallen and apostate 
from truth, having brought all na- 
tions of mankind under the madden- 
ing mesmerism of its wickedness. 



The Christ as Executive Mind 



9 And another angel, a 
third, followed them, saying 
with a great voice, If any 
man worshippeth the beast 
* and his image, and receiveth 
. a mark on his forehead, or 
io upon his hand, he also shall 
drink of the wine of the 
ardor (wrath) 'of God, 
which is prepared unmixed 
in the cup of his frenzy 
(anger), and he shall be 
tested (tormented) with fire 
and brimstone in the pres- 
ence of the holy angels, and 

1 1 in the presence of the Lamb : 
and the smoke of their test- 
ing (torment) goeth up unto 
the ages of ages (for ever 
and ever) ; and they have 
no rest day and night, they 
that worship the beast and 



And the Christ as Divine Will, 
Executive Mind, revealed clearly, 
that if any man reverences worldly 
misgovernment and the anthropomor- 
phic sense of God, and becomes sub- 
ject thereto either inwardly or out- 
wardly (contrary to the service of 
God), that man shall drink of the 
wine of the ardor of God, which is 
prepared unmixed in the cup of his 
loving zeal to save men from evil, 
and he shall be disciplined by the 
Holy Spirit in the presence of all 
right ideas and of the Christ him- 
self. And the discipline of such 
never ceases as long as they sin : — 
those who reverence worldly mis- 
government and the man-made sense 
of God, and bow down to human 
authority, when it conflicts with the 



XIV : 12-18 



SECTION V 



329 



Amended Revised Version 
his' image, and whoso re- 
ceiveth the mark of his 

12 name. Here is the patience 
of the saints, they that keep 
the commandments of God, 

13 and the faith of Jesus. And 
I heard a voice from heaven 
saying, Write, Blessed are 
the dead which die in the 
Lord from henceforth : yea, 
saith the Spirit, that they 
may rest from their labours ; 
for their works follow with 
them. 



Suggestive Paraphrase 
decrees of God. To heed the lesson 
of this vision will require much en- 
durance on the part of Christ's peo- 
ple, who would keep the command- 
ments of God, and continue in the 
truth taught by Jesus. And I was 
commanded to make known that 
those are really fortunate who suffer 
physical death while loyally obeying 
Christ ; for the Spirit testifies, that 
such will experience mental rest and 
peace ; and their good deeds will con- 
tinue to accrue to their credit. 



The Christ as Spiritual Intuition 



14 



And I saw, and behold, a 
white cloud; and on the 
cloud I saw one sitting like 
unto a son of man, having 
on his head a golden crown, 
and in his hand a sharp 
sickle. 



And I beheld Spiritual Intuition, 
a manifestation of Christ, appearing 
in glory, clothed with authority, and 
exercising discernment. 



The Christ as Divine Love 



15 And another angel came 
out from the temple, crying 
with a great voice to him 
that sat on the cloud, Send 
forth thy sickle, and reap : 
for the hour to reap is 
come; for the harvest of 

16 the earth is over-ripe. And 
he that sat on the cloud cast 
his sickle upon the earth ; 
and the earth was reaped. 



And I saw divine Love manifested 
by the Christ-mind, and giving in- 
sistent direction to Spiritual Intui- 
tion to separate between truth and 
error in the human consciousness ; 
for the time for such separation is 
ever at hand ; and there is need for 
the execution of judgment among 
men. And Spiritual Intuition will 
continue to execute this command. 



The Christ as Perception of Reality 



17 And another angel came 
out from the temple which 
is in heaven, he also having 
a sharp sickle. 



And there appeared another active 

manifestation of Christ, destructive 
of evil, namely, Perception of Reality. 



The Christ as Perception of Substance 

And there appeared another mani- 
festation of the Christ-mind; and it 
directed Perception of Reality, that 
it shall bring into judgment the 
works of men which are ripe for 



18 And another angel came 
out from the altar, he that 
hath power over fire; and 
he called with a great voice 
to him that had the sharp 
sickle, saying, Send forth 



330 



REVELATION INTERPRETED 



XIV : 19 



Amended Revised Version 
thy sharp sickle, and gather 
the clusters of the vine of 
the earth; for her grapes 

19 are fully ripe. And the an- 
gel cast his sickle into the 
earth, and gathered the vint- 
age of the earth, and cast it 
into the winepress, the great 
winepress, of the ardor 

20 (wrath) of God. And the 
winepress was trodden with- 
out the city, and there came 
out blood from the wine- 
press, even unto the bridles 
of the horses, as far as a 
thousand and six hundred 
furlongs. 

(Continued 



Suggestive Paraphrase 
judgment. And Perception of Real- 
ity will do so, and will bring men 
and their works to the test under the 
impulsion of divine Love. And evil 
will be kept excluded from the spirit- 
ual consciousness, and will be de- 
stroyed in its own realm, with much 
bloodshed and suffering on the part 
of men who are enmeshed in it ("but 
they themselves shall be saved — saved 
out of evil — yet so as by fire." See 
1 Cor. 3:15.) 



on Page 349.) 



NOTES BY THE READER 331 



332 NOTES BY THE READER 



SECTION VI 
THE VISION OF THE LAST DAYS 

(Chapter XV-XX) 

This vision occupies chapters 15 to 19. Movements in the 
mental realm which are prophesied under the visions of the 
preceding chapters of the Book are those which commence at 
or soon after the birth of Jesus and continue until near the 
end of the reign of discord or satan. They are distinctly 
dominant during a period which St. John speaks of variously 
as "time, times, and half a time", "forty and two months", 
and "twelve hundred sixty days", which are all equivalent, 
reckoning thirty days to the month. As already indicated in 
Note 3 of the Introduction, there are reasons for believing that 
these expressions were not intended to refer to a definite 
period of time, but to what may be spoken of as "world-time", 
or "satan-time", the period of the ascendency of evil and false- 
hood in their various manifestations. Near the end of this 
"world-time", the movements described as "the seven last 
plagues', and other movements having to do with the destruc- 
tion of evil, commence, and continue until all evil and, at the 
last, the sense of matter and time disappear ; so that these last 
chapters may properly be called "the vision of the last 
days", as already indicated. 

In chapter 15 12-4, is given what may be regarded as a 
praise service among the redeemed, because the conflicts which 
are to result in the complete destruction of evil and evil-doers 
are near their end. In verses 5-8 following, is given a vision 
of the seven angels, the seven active manifestations of Truth, 
which are to remand seven phases of assertive error to punish- 
ment and final destruction, as described in chapter 16. 

333 



334 REVELATION INTERPRETED XV-XVII 

There is foretold the destruction of sensuality and mate- 
rialism (verse 2) ; and of sensuousness and psychism (verse 
3) ; and of human emotions (4-7) ; and of false doctrine 
(8-9) ; and of animal magnetism (10, 11) ; and of idolatry and 
superstition (verse 12) ; and of general mortal belief (verses 
17-21). 

In verses 13, 14, is given, as an episode, a vision of three 
unclean miracle-working spirits, loathsome to a spiritually 
minded person as frogs are to the material sense of many 
people. These probably indicate un-Christlike methods of 
healing, — hypnotism, mental therapeutics, suggestion; materia 
medica ; healing through blind faith, shrines, relics, etc. 

The interpretation of chapters 15 and 16 is given fully in 
connection with the interpretation of chapters 8 and 9. 

CHAPTER XV 

Verses 1-8 The interpretation of these verses is to be found on 
pages 171-173, and on pages 349, 350 of the Suggestive Paraphrase, fol- 
lowing. 

CHAPTER XVI 

Verse 2 The interpretation of this verse is to be found on pages 
186, 187, and on page 350 of the Suggestive Paraphrase. 

Verse 3 The interpretation of this verse is to be found on pages 
190, and on page 350, Suggestive Paraphrase. 

Verses 4-7 The interpretation of these verses is to be found on 
pages 194-196, and on page 351, Suggestive Paraphrase. 

Verses 8-9 The interpretation of these verses is to be found on 
pages 197, 198, and on page 351, Suggestive Paraphrase. 

Verses 10-11 The interpretation of these verses is to be found on 
pages 201, 202, and on page 351, Suggestive Paraphrase. 

Verse 12 The interpretation of this verse is to be found on page 
208, and on page 352, Suggestive Paraphrase. 

Verses 13-16 The interpretation ^of these verses is to be found on 
pages 227, 228, and on page 352, Suggestive Paraphrase. 

Verses 17-21 The interpretation of these verses is to be found on 
pages 233-235, and on pages 352, 353, Suggestive Paraphrase. 

CHAPTER XVII 

Verses 7-17 The interpretation of these verses is to be found oh 
pages 283-288, and on pages 354, 355, Suggestive Paraphrase. 



XVII-XVIII SECTION VI 335 

In chapters ij and 18, wicked mental Babylon, the personi- 
fication of Worldly Lust, is described. Men are warned to 
come out of her and to keep free from her. She is as wicked 
as a fallen woman, and is a fallen city. The ultimate destruc- 
tion of Worldly Lust is foretold. 

To any one who understands, as John undoubtedly did, that 
all God's creation, the only real creation, is spiritual and good, 
and that all that appears as material and evil is totally unreal, 
— to anyone having such an understanding, the very appear- 
ance of matter and evil in all their forms is a mystery. The 
mystery is, how such falsehoods and unrealities could have 
sprung into appearance at any time in the past, or how they 
can continue in appearance now, since good is omnipresent 
and all powerful. To John's sense, Babylon was the symbol 
of practically all materiality and evil; and it may be for the 
reason above described that John speaks of Babylon as a 
"mystery", as he does in verse 5. 

On chapter 18, Mr. Pryse makes the following very clear 
and interesting comment: 

"In the rejoicing and lamentation over the prospective fall 
of Babylon (an event which, for the mass of mankind, lies in 
the extremely remote future) the four castes take part. The 
highest caste, or distinctive class, is given as three-fold, com- 
posed of devotees, apostles and seers ; but they utter no rejoic- 
ings, the Divinities acting as their spokesmen. The profane, 
comprising the rulers or dominant warlike class, the merchants 
or trading class, and the sailors, the toiling masses on the sea 
of life, indulge in lamentations over the downfall of the great 
city. For the present, and for ages to come, in Christian and 
pagan lands alike, Astarte remains enthroned on the scarlet 
Dragon, "who is the Devil and Satan", and in this twentieth 
century her cup is more overflowing with abominations, and 
the traffic in the bodies and souls of men and of women goes 
on even more briskly and heartlessly, than in the days when 
Ioannes penned his mystic scroll. The destruction of the 
Apocalypse Babylon will come only when humanity shall have 
learned to loathe the lusts of the flesh and to love the glories of 
the Spirit." 



336 REVELATION INTERPRETED XIX : 1-10 

In 19:1-10, are prophesied the triumphant song of the 
redeemed and the marriage of the Lamb, — the union with 
Christ of the human mentalities which had been striving to 
gain that union. In 19:11-21, we have a vision of Christ and 
his followers riding forth to victory. It is interesting and 
important to note that at this time "the beast was taken, and 
with him the false prophet" , and ''these both were cast alive 
into a lake of fire burning with brimstone" (verse 20) ; that 
is, at this time worldly government and the worldly church, — 
every form of human organization, — will be destroyed. This 
will come to pass because mankind has finally grown suffi- 
ciently spiritual and good so that men will neither need to 
instruct each other or restrain each other, for every man will 
know and obey God sufficiently to understand right conduct, 
and not to trespass upon his neighbor's rights, without being 
restrained by fear of human punishment. "And they shall 
teach no more every man his neighbor, and every man his 
brother, saying, Know the Lord: for they shall all know me, 
from the least of them unto the greatest of them, saith the 
Lord" (Jer. 31:34). St. John indicates that this condition, 
where every man is self -governed, because he has demon- 
strated the divine government, must be attained by humanity 
before satan (discord) can be bound, and the millennium can 
be ushered in, as described in the first four verses of chap- 
ter 20. 

Verse 10 "And I fell at his feet to worship him. And he said unto 
me, See thou do it not: I am thy fellozu servant, and of thy brethren 
that have the testimony of Jesus: zvorship God: for the testimony of 
Jesus is the spirit of prophecy." 

John would do honor to the angel who reveals these things 
to him ; but the angel forbids it, saying that God alone is to be 
worshipped, "for the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of 
prophecy ." This spirit of prophecy is not a personal posses- 
sion, and does not entitle the one who exercises it to be wor- 
shipped. As St. Paul says : "We have this treasure in earthen 
vessels, that the excellency of the power may be of God, and 



XIX : 17, 18 SECTION VI 337 

not of us" (2 Cor. 4:7). The spirit of prophecy, like every 
other manifestation of good, emanates from the divine Mind, 
and that Mind, God, is alone to be worshipped. The tendency 
to worship persons or institutions because they are channels 
for good is blasphemy and idolatry. 

If the student will consult a Greek lexicon for the meaning 
of proskuneo, he will see that John was not only forbidden to 
worship the angel or messenger in our sense of the word 
''worship", but he was forbidden to prostrate himself, to make 
a profound bow, to reverence, or even do honor to the angel. 
He was commanded to do these things to God alone. 

Verses 17, 18 "And I sazv an Angel [Greek, a lone angel] standing 
in the sun, and he cried with a loud voice, saying to all the fowls that 
fly in the midst of heaven, Come and gather yourselves together unto 
the supper of the great God; that ye may eat the flesh of kings, and the 
flesh of captains, and the flesh of mighty men, and the flesh of horses, 
and of them that sit on them, and the flesh of all men both free and 
bond, both small and great." 

The "lone anger is the militant Christ as Michael, who 
drove the dragon out of "heaven", as related in chapter 12. 
"The fowls that fly in the midst of heaven' 3 are spiritual ideas, 
all right ideas, which are summoned and commanded to destroy 
falsehood, — to consume the "flesh", the seeming substance 
and reality, of all phases of mortal mentality, whether exalted 
or humble in appearance, — to consume all the self-assertive 
forces that claim power to oppose the Christ. 

Eschatology 

The events forecast in chapter 20 have been spoken of by 
theologians under the title "Eschatology", which means the 
science, or the account of, the last things. There is no reason 
why all the movements described from the beginning of 
chapter 15 should not be included under this title, and some 
do so include them. To a more detailed interpretation of the 
final events in the overcoming of error, as outlined for us in 
chapter 20, we now turn. 



338 REVELATION INTERPRETED Escnatoiogy 

The Order of Progress 

The order of the working out of the human problem, — 
that is, the order in which the different phases of evil, false- 
hood, will be overcome, — through the application of the scien- 
tific knowledge of Truth, would seem to be as follows : First, 
sin, disease, accident and poverty will be overcome. This 
work has already commenced. There will remain to be 
destroyed the false concepts named death, matter, and limi- 
tation. These false concepts are so deeply seated in general 
mortal belief that, as yet, it is possible to make little apparent 
headway in overcoming them with the limited realization of 
Truth which we, at present, have ; but when the whole race 
shall have come into the understanding of the Christ-Science 
sufficiently to have eliminated sin, disease, poverty and acci- 
dents, the racial and individual realization of Truth will be 
very much clearer and more powerful, while the power of gen- 
eral mortal belief will be correspondingly lessened. 

Sin, disease, poverty and accidents having been eliminated, 
there will be nothing to lead up to "death" in human experi- 
ence; hence, in the last days they will not die any more,* but 

* Students quite frequently raise the question, If the time comes 
when people do not die any more, will not the earth become over- 
populated? It will not, because in proportion as the race becomes 
spiritually-minded enough to successfully resist sin, disease, and death, 
in that proportion it will be spiritually-minded enough not to be tempted 
by the lusts of the flesh in begetting children, and the desire for children 
after the flesh will pass from human consciousness. Thus, as the race 
comes into the knowledge and demonstration of Christian Science, the 
birth-rate will decrease in exact proportion as the death-rate decreases. 
St. Paul wrote: "They which are the children of the flesh, these are 
not the children of God" (Rom. 9:8). According to an ancient manu- 
script known as "The Gospel to the Egyptians," "When Salome asked 
(Jesus) how long death would prevail, the Lord said, So long as ye 
women bear children." . . . When Salome asked when those things 
about which she questioned should be made known, the Lord said, 
When ye trample upon the garment of shame ; when the two become 
one, and the male with the female, neither male nor female." — From 
"New Sayings of Jesus" page 43, Oxford University Press. 



ischatoiogy SECTION VI 339 



will live and reign with Christ (with their knowledge and 
realization of Truth) on a perfected and glorious earth, in a 
glorified sense still material, but freed from natural cataclysms, 
such as famines, floods, and earthquakes, and made fruitful in 
every way, — an earth on which the kingdom of God, the 
kingdom of harmony, has come, as it is in heaven, just as far 
as it is possible to have heavenly harmony and completeness 
exemplified in connection with matter. At this time will 
commence a period of mental harmony and unity among the 
inhabiters of earth, which is spoken of as "the millennium", 
during which satan (discord) is suppressed as described in 

20:1-3. 

Resurrection 

The period having arrived when people do not die any 
more, the only thing remaining to demonstrate completely the 
unreality of death is to prove that those of former generations 
seeming to have died did not die, — that their estate was not 
changed, — that their seeming to have died was only a false 
belief imposed on humanity by the devil. This demonstration 
can be made by bringing those who seemed to have died, and to 
have passed to "the other side" (into the next belief) visibly 
into the presence of those living "here" (in this belief). There 
is no space in truth, in the true consciousness ; and, on careful 
analysis, it can be seen that there is no space in error, since 
error is merely false consciousness. The belief of space inheres 
in the belief in matter ; but matter itself is merely a false belief, 
an objectified state of general mortal belief. Matter being 
merely an illusory dream, the sense of space is only a part of 
this dream. At the root both truth and error are states of 
consciousness ; and to consciousness, whether true or false, 
everything is presence, if in consciousness at all, and there 
is no absence. Hence, those "here" are separated from those 
"there", not by space, but merely by a difference of conditions 
in the two beliefs, — the two beliefs formed by general mortal 
belief and mesmerically imposed on those "here" and those 
"there", until general mortal belief shall have been so much 



340 REVELATION INTERPRETED Eschatoio^y 

overcome by the knowledge and application of the truth, that 
it can no longer maintain this imposition. As those "here" 
and those "there" work and demonstrate their way toward the 
same truth, they will demonstrate their way more and more 
toward the one Christ-consciousness, and finally they will do 
this to such an extent that there will be no difference between 
their states of belief, because they have come into one con- 
sciousness. At this point, the difference of belief which has 
so long separated those "here" from those "there" will be 
broken down ; and they will all seem to be together in one 
place, on a glorified earth, and perhaps on an enlarged sense 
of the earth. When those "there" thus come visibly into the 
presence of those "here", it will appear to those "here" like a 
"resurrection of the dead." 

The First Resurrection 

It is entirely reasonable to suppose that those who have 
been spiritually minded and loyal to Truth "here" will be 
those who, on passing on, will maintain spiritual leadership 
among the inhabitants of "there", and that these will be more 
ready than the less spiritual among those "there" to come 
into unity of understanding with the spiritually minded "here" 
in the last days. Hence, it is reasonable to expect that some 
of the so-called dead will come visibly into the presence of 
those "here" in the last days before others of the so-called 
dead ; and the 20th chapter of Revelation seems to teach this. 
"This is the first resurrection' , spoken of in Rev. 20:5. John 
indicates that this "first resurrection" will take place at the 
beginning of the millennium or thousand-year period already 
spoken of, so that those reappearing in the first resurrection 
will dwell on the earth (that is, in "this belief") during the 
millennial period along with the generation of those who will 
not experience death ; but John foresees that there will have 
to be a further growth in spirituality before the remainder of 
the so-called dead can be resurrected, and says that this will 
not take place until after the thousand-year period is ended. 



Eschatology SECTION VI 341 

The Loosing of Satan 

At the end of this long period of harmony among men, he 
tells us that satan (discord) will be loosed again for a season, 
and will bring mankind under its sway. It is not difficult to 
see what the occasion for this discord may be. It may arise 
over the question of going on to overcome the one remaining 
false belief named matter, with the sense of material bodies, 
and all attendant material circumstances. Everybody is, and 
always will be, glad to overcome disease, poverty, accident, 
and death; and a person need not become very spiritual to 
be willing to dispense with sin. It is, therefore, easy to see 
that, after the theory of Divine Science becomes generally 
understood, all will willingly co-operate to overcome every- 
thing except the belief of matter ; but it is entirely conceivable, 
that, after these other beliefs have been overcome, there will 
be some who will mentally struggle to go still farther and 
overcome the belief of matter, while there will be many more 
who will cling to the material sense, and to the sense of 
material selfhood, because they do not wish to lose their 
human so-called "individuality", as will happen when all attain 
the true individuality by putting on Christ and thus becoming 
one. Such will say that endless life on the earth, where there 
is no want, no sin, no disease, or death, is good enough for 
them. They may not see that, good as such a life is from a 
comparative standpoint, it is yet far short of the completeness 
and joy of limitless life in God. Thus, there may arise a 
mental division between those desiring to go on and those 
clinging to the material order. This will be the period, 
spoken of in Rev. 20:3, when the devil (discord) "must be 
loosed a little season." But absolute spirituality will, of 
course, triumph in the end, and then will come the destruction 
of the devil, discord. 



342 REVELATION INTERPRETED Eschatoiog-y 

The General Resurrection 

All love for materiality, and desire to cling to corporeal 
selfhood, having been thus eliminated from the consciousness 
of humanity, mankind will have become sufficiently spiritual 
to demonstrate the second or general resurrection as described 
in 20:11-13, at which time will occur the general judgment; 
that is, the final separation between good and evil in the minds 
of men, and the destruction of the evil. 

The Final Destruction of Evil 

Then will follow the absolute and final destruction of 
general evil, general mortal belief, and all remnants of error 
as described in 20:14-15. This event John speaks of as 
"the second death." 

The Destruction of the Matter-Belief 

Then will come the demonstration over the belief of matter 
and the material universe, as forecast in 21 :i.* 

* There are several earnest, intelligent, and highly successful 
Christian Scientists who hold that matter will be demonstrated over 
and mortal belief brought to the end of its false appearance within the 
next few years. The writer earnestly hopes that they are right, but he 
is unable to interpret prophecy or ''read the signs of the times" that 
way. He will be glad to have anyone write him who feels that he has 
any important evidence to present, on this subject. 



XX : 1-6 SECTION VI 343 

The Scripture as to "The Last Days." 

(Chapter xx) 

These are the different events which are forecast to hap- 
pen in "the last days" ; and they are all spoken of by St. John 
in chapters 16-20. We may now comment briefly on the 
various verses in these chapters with interest and advantage. 

1-3 "And I saw an angel come down from heaven, having the key 
of the bottomless pit and a great chain in his hand. And he laid hold 
on the dragon, that old serpent, which is the Devil, and Satan, and 
bound him a thousand years, and cast him into the bottomless pit, and 
shut him up, and set a seal upon him, that he should deceive the nations 
no more, till the thousand years should be fulfilled: and after that he 
must be loosed a little season." 

As already indicated, chapter 20:1-3 refers to the period 
of harmony among men and in general human consciousness, 
lasting something like a thousand years, before the final occa- 
sion of discord above spoken of arises. 

4-5 "And I saw thrones, and they sat upon them, and judgment was 
given unto them: and I sazu the souls of them that were beheaded for 
the witness of Jesus, and for the zvord of God, and which had not wor- 
shipped the beast, neither his image, neither had received his mark 
upon their foreheads, or in their hands; and they lived and reigned 
with Christ a thousand years. But the rest of the dead lived not again 
until the thousand years were finished. This is the first resurrection." 

Chapter 20:4-5 refers to "the first resurrection" and those 
who have part in it, and to those who must wait for the 
second resurrection. 

6 "Blessed and holy is he that hath part in the first resurrection: 
on such the second death hath no power, but they shall be priests of 
God and of Christ, and shall reign with him a thousand years." 



344 REVELATION INTERPRETED XX: 7-11 

Verse 6 speaks of "the second death." "The second death" 
refers to the final and complete destruction of error, even of 
death and hell themselves, as shown in verse 14. Verse 6 
declares that those who have part in the first resurrection 
are so purified from error that there is nothing in their con- 
sciousness to be destroyed at or by the second death, the 
general destruction of error. 

7-9 "And when the thousand years are expired, Satan shall be 
loosed out of his prison, and shall go to deceive the nations -which are 
in the four quarters of the earth, Gog and Magog, to gather them to- 
gether to battle: the number of whom is as the sand of the sea. And 
they went up on the breadth of the earth, and compassed the camp of the 
saints about, and the beloved city: and fire came down from God out of 
Heaven, and devoured them" 

Verses 7-9 refer to the final period of discord above spoken 
of, when those who desire to cling to materiality mentally 
camp against those who desire to make the complete spiritual 
demonstration; but "fire" (purifying truth) conies down from 
God out of heaven (verse 9) and devours the mortal factor in 
the mentalities of all these, while leaving the immortal factor 
in their mentalities untouched. 

10 "And the Devil that deceived them was cast into the lake of 
fire and brimstone, where the beast and the false prophet are, and 
shall be tormented day and night for ever and ever." 

Verse 10 refers to the final destruction of mortal mind, 
the devil. "The lake of fire and brimstone" is simply a fig- 
urative expression for the consuming of general evil and of all 
false factors of consciousness, and the phrase "they shall be 
tormented day and night forever and ever'' should be taken 
to signify, not endless torment, but the absoluteness of the 
destruction. 

11 "And I saw a great white throne, and him that sat on it. from 
whose face the earth and Heaven fled away; and there was found no 
place for them." 



XX: 12-15 SECTION VI 345 

Verse n refers to the complete realization or perception of 
God, so that, as He is fully perceived and realized mentally, 
the material sense of earth and heaven "fled azvay from before 
his face", His realized presence. 

12-13 "And I saw the dead, small and great, stand before God; 
and the books were opened: and another book was opened, which is 
the book of life: and the dead were judged out of those things which 
were written in the books, according to their works. And the sea gave 
up the dead which were in it; and death and hell delivered up the 
dead which were in them: and they were judged every man according 
to their works." 

Verses 12-13 refer to the final destruction and the final 
judgment. The so-called dead, who do not have part in the 
first resurrection, will be resurrected at this time, and will be 
judged according to the standard of God. The records of 
their past lives will be disclosed, and the laws of life will also 
be disclosed ; and according as the records of their lives shall 
bear comparison with the laws of life, will the resurrected 
dead be judged. 

14-15 "And death and hell were cast into the lake of fire. This 
is the second death. And ivhosoever was not found written in the 
book of life zvas cast into the lake of fire." 

Verses 14 and 15 refer to the complete destruction of evil 
above spoken of. 

In verse 15 we are taught that the mortal or false factor 
of every man's consciousness "zvas not found written in the 
book of life" and so "was cast into the lake of fire" , along 
with general evil, to be destroyed. "Mortals" are constituted 
of the false factors in the mentalities of human beings, while 
"immortals" are the true factor, the knowledge of truth, in 
the mentalities of men. All "immortals" are eternally safe, 
because they have part in the reflection of the one Mind, 
which is forever. All "mortals", all false mentalities or beliefs 
of falsehood, are predestined to be destroyed. This is the 



346 REVELATION INTERPRETED XX : 15 

true doctrine of predestination. In this connection Romans 
8:28-30 is interesting.* 

With the final destruction of the false claims of evil and 
matter, which immediately follow the final judgment, the time- 
consciousness passes away ; for all men will then attain the 
spiritual, eternal consciousness, which is opposite to the time- 
belief. As Mrs. Eddy says in "Science and Health" (page 
468), "Eternity, not time, expresses the thought of Life, and 
time is no part of eternity. One ceases in proportion as the 
other is recognized." Accordingly, when the events forecast in 
chapter 20 have transpired, the consciousness of measured 
duration will have ceased. Hence, here ends the period or the 
experience of humanity called "the last days." 

* Mr. F. L. Rawson writes : "Every single thing that one does, says, 
and thinks is predestined. Predestination can be spoken of as phenom- 
enal matter existing in the form of thought before it is seen, but that 
which is predestined is more accurately looked upon as cinematographic 
pictures, since such pictures present less the appearance of power than 
'thoughts' do. The nearer we can get in statement to presenting non- 
reality, the better. All the cinematographic picures were in position 
over a million years ago, and all that we can do is to turn in thought 
to God in such a way as to open our human minds, and then the action 
of God destroys the evil in the cinematographic pictures, that is, thins 
the mist of materiality, so that we see heaven a little more like what it 
really is." 



NOTES BY THE READER 347 



348 NOTES BY THE READER 



REVISED TRANSLATION AND SUGGEST- 
IVE PARAPHRASE 

SECTION VI 

THE FINAL CONFLICT 

Chapter XV. The Angels of the Vials 
A Praise Service 



Amended Revised Version 

And I saw another sign in 
heaven, great and marvel- 
lous, seven angels having 
seven scourges (plagues), 
which are the last, for in 
them is accomplished the 
eager desire (finished the 
wrath) of God. And I saw 
as it were a glassy sea min- 
gled with fire ; and them 
that come victorious from 
the beast, and from his 
image, and from the number 
of his name, standing by 
the glassy sea, having harps 
of God. And they sing the 
song of Moses the servant 
of God, and the song of the 
Lamb, saying. Great and 
marvellous are thy works, O 
Lord God, the Almighty; 
righteous and true are thy 
ways, thou King of the 
ages. Who shall not rev- 
erence (fear), O Lord, and 
glorify thy name? for thou 
only art holy ; for all the 
nations shall come and 
worship before thee ; for 
thy righteous acts have been 
made manifest. 



Suggestive Paraphrase 
And there was revealed to me, in 
the form of seven visions, a marvel- 
lous overcoming by Truth, which will 
later take place, indicating to me the 
full measure of God's redemptive 
power. And I saw the truth to be 
mentally transparent as glass and de- 
structive of evil as fire : and those 
who have gotten the victory over 
worldly authority and rule, and over 
idolatrous worship thereof, and over 
outward slavery thereto, will be up- 
held by truth, and will rejoice with 
the joy of good. And they will pro- 
claim the law of Moses, and the gos- 
pel of Christ, and will say, Great and 
marvellous are thy works, Lord God 
Almighty; just and true are thy 
ways, eternal King. Who shall not 
reverence thee, O Lord, and praise 
all thy manifestations? for thou only 
art holy : for all nations shall be con- 
verted to thy service ; for thy judg- 
ments are become manifest. 



A Further Revelation from the Spirit of Prophecy 

And after that the very inmost and 
deepest hidden of things to happen 
were revealed to me. 

349 k 



5 And after these things I 
saw, and the temple of the 
tabernacle of the testimony 
in heaven was opened. 



350 



REVELATION INTERPRETED XV : 6-XVI : 3 



The Angels of the Bowls 



Amended Revised Version 

6 And there came out from 
the temple the seven angels 
that had the seven scourges 
(plagues) arrayed with 
precious stones, pure and 
bright, and girt about their 
breasts with golden girdles. 

7 And one of the four living 
creatures gave unto the 
seven angels seven golden 
bowls full of the ardor 
(wrath) of God, who liveth 
unto the ages of the ages 

8 (for ever and ever). And 
the temple was filled with 
smoke from the glory of 
God, and from his power; 
and none was able to enter 
into the temple, till the 
seven scourges (plagues) 
of the seven angels should 
be finished. 

i And I heard a great voice 
out of the temple, saying to 
the seven angels, Go ye, 
and pour out the seven 
bowls of the ardor (wrath) 
of God into the earth. 



Suggestive Paraphrase 
And out of the depths of this reve- 
lation came now the visions of the 
seven manifestations of the Christ- 
mind, which are to uncover and de- 
stroy all the phases of evil, these 
visions of Truth clothed with purity 
and engirt with holiness. And the 
Holy Spirit will give unto these seven 
manifestations of Truth the power to 
uncover and destroy all of the phases 
of error,— the power being of God, 
who liveth for ever and ever. And 
the deepest things in the realm of 
consciousness now seemed obscured 
by the overwhelming brightness of 
God's glory, and the greatness of 
His power ; and no man will be able 
to penetrate to these depths, till all 
the phases of evil have been de- 
stroyed. 

Chapter XVI 

And I seemed to hear a divine 
Voice saying to the seven manifesta- 
tions of God, Perform your office ; 
proceed to uncover and remand to 
self-destruction all phases of evil. 



Spiritual Aspiration versus Materiality and Sensuality 



2 And the first went, and 
• poured out his bowl into 
the earth ; and there came 
(it became) a noisome and 
grievous sore upon the men 
which had the mark of the 
beast, and which worship 
his image. 



And the human consciousness will 
become energized with Spiritual As- 
piration and will mentally enforce 
the law of God against materiality 
and sensuality, and men who wor- 
ship worldly government and the 
man-made sense of God will be sore- 
ly afflicted. 



Spiritual Reason versus Sensuousness and Psychism 



3 And the second poured 
out his bowl into the sea ; 
and it became blood as a 
dead man ; and every living 
soul died, even the things 
that were in the sea. 



And the human consciousness will 
become energized with Spiritual Rea- 
son, which will combat sensuousness 
and psychism, and their activity will 
cease. 



XVI: 4-11 TEXT AND PARAPHRASE 



351 



Executive Mind versus Human Emotions 



Amended Revised Version 

4 And the third poured out 
his bowl into the rivers and 
the fountains of the waters; 
and they (it) became blood. 

5 And I heard the angel of 
the waters saying, Right- 
eous art thou, which art 
and which wast, thou Holy 
One, because thou didst 

6 thus judge: for they poured 
out the blood of saints and 
prophets, and blood hast thou 
given them to drink : they 

7 are worthy. And I heard 
the altar saying, Yea, O 
Lord God, the Almighty, 
true and righteous are thy 
judgments. 



Suggestive Paraphrase 
And the human consciousness will 
attain the life of Mind, Spirit, re- 
placing human emotions, whose dis- 
cordant aspects will be brought to 
the surface. And I heard the Christ, 
manifesting Executive Mind, Life, 
saying, Righteous art thou, holy and 
eternal God, in excluding human emo- 
tions from harmony; for they have 
caused Christ's people and the pro- 
claimers of thy law to be killed, and 
now they are reaping like destruction, 
which they deserve. And the spirit- 
ual church affirmed the justice of 
God's judgments. 



Spiritual Intuition versus Worldly Wisdom 



8 And the fourth poured 
out his bowl upon the sun; 
and it was given unto it to 

9 scorch men with fire. And 
men were scorched with 
great heat : and they blas- 
phemed the name of the 
God which hath the power 
over these scourges 
(plagues) ; and they re- 
pented not to give .him 
glory. 



And the human consciousness will 
attain Spiritual Intuition, which will 
assert itself against mortal intellect, 
driving it to display more_ violently 
than ever its discordant activity, thus 
"scorching" the men who are still 
under its sway; but they will not 
recognize false intellect as the source 
of their torment, but will curse God 
as the supposed source of their trou- 
ble, who would destroy their plagues, 
if they would turn to Him ; and they 
will not turn from their evil way 
and give God glory. 



Divine Love versus Fleshly Desires 



io And the fifth poured out 
his bowl upon the throne 
of the beast; and his king- 
dom was darkened ; and 
they gnawed their tongues 

n for pain, and they blas- 
phemed the God of heaven 
because of their pains and 
their sores ; and they re- 
pented not of their works. 



And the human consciousness will 
attain to a knowledge of divine Love, 
which will assert itself against the 
belief that life, intelligence and pleas- 
ure are in matter ; and the realm of 
material sense will be full of dark- 
ness and discord; and the licentious 
will be afflicted with grievous dis- 
eases and pains and they will blas- 
pheme God because of their diseases, 
falsely attributing them to Him, and 
will not repent of their deeds. 



352 



REVELATION INTERPRETED XIV : 12-18 



Perception of 

Amended Revised Version 
12 And the sixth poured out 
his bowl upon the great 
river, the river Euphrates ; 
and the water thereof was 
dried up, that the way 
might be made ready for 
the kings that come from 
the sunrising. 



Reality versus Idolatry 

Suggestive Paraphrase 
And the human consciousness will 
attain the Perception of Reality, 
which will bring to final destruction 
the great stream of superstition in 
mortal mind, and mankind will turn 
from it, so that the way for the ad- 
vance of Christ's people will be pre- 
pared. 



Hypnotism, Materia 

13 And I saw coming out of 
the mouth of the dragon, 
and out of the mouth of the 
beast, and out of the mouth 
of the false prophet, three 
unclean spirits, as it were 

14 frogs : for they are spirits 
of devils, working signs; 
which go forth unto the 
kings of the whole world, to 
gather them together urito 
the war of the great day of 

15 God, the Almighty. (Be- 
hold I come as a thief. 
Blessed is he that watcheth, 
and keepeth his garments, 
lest he walk naked, and they 

16 see his shame.) And they 
gathered them together into 
the place which is called in 
Hebrew Har-Magedon. 



Medica, and Faith Cure 

And I saw that there will be un- 
clean methods of working what men 
will call miracles, — methods as loath- 
some as frogs. From worldly gov- 
ernment will issue legalized materia 
medica; from the worldly church 
will issue healing through blind faith, 
shrines, relics etc. ; from mortal mind, 
the devil, will issue hypnotism, men- 
tal therapeutics, suggestion, etc. 
These false methods of doing seem- 
ingly wonderful things will lay hold 
upon the allegiance of the men who 
will rule in worldly thought, and 
will hold many of them even to the 
time when Truth will finally destroy 
all falsehood and evil. And behold! 
this time will come unexpectedly. 
Fortunate will be those who shall 
keep themselves ever ready, clothed 
with righteousness, lest their evil 
deeds which they think are hidden 
shall be unexpectedly uncovered, and 
they be brought to shame. And 
through the work of truth these evil 
methods and influences will be 
"rounded up" for their final destruc- 
tion. 



Perception of Substance versus 

17 And the seventh poured out 
his bowl upon the air; and 
there came forth a great 
voice out of the temple, 
from the throne, saying, 

18 It is done : and there were 
lightnings, and voices, and 
thunders ; and there was a 
great earthquake, such as 



Belief of Matter as Life and Substance 

And human consciousness will at- 
tain the Perception of Spirit as the 
only Substance, and will thus uncover 
for final destruction the hidden, om- 
nipresent parent of all special and 
particular evils, namely, mortal mind ; 
this will bring the whole contest to 
an end. The Holy Spirit will be ac- 



XVI : 19-XVII : 3 



TEXT AND PARAPHRASE 



353 



Amended Revised Version 
was not since there were 
men upon the earth, so 
great an earthquake, so 

19 mighty. And the great 
city was divided into three 
parts, and the cities of the 
nations fell: and Babylon 
the great was remembered in 
the sight of God, to give 
unto her the cup of the 
wine of the ardor of his 
seal (fierceness of his 

20 wrath). And every island 
fled away, and the moun- 

21 tains were not found. And 
great hail, every stone about 
the weight of a talent, 
cometh down out of heaven 
upon men: and men blas- 
phemed God because of the 
scourge (plague) of the 
hail; for the scourge 
(plague) thereof is exceed- 
ing great. 



Suggestive Paraphrase 
tive; and there will be such a gen- 
eral upheaval among men as was 
never known before. And Worldly 
Lust (in which all mortals dwell) 
will be dismembered, and the special 
phases of evil which hold men in sub- 
servience will be overthrown: and 
Worldly Lust will be brought into 
judgment for final destruction by 
Truth. And every human institution 
which had seemed established and en- 
during will vanish away. And dur- 
ing this final contest wicked and un- 
repentant mortals will be exceedingly 
tormented and destroyed, as though 
huge hail stones should fall upon 
them- and they will curse God and 
blaspheme Him by falsely attributing 
this torment to Him; for the punish- 
ment will be very severe.* 



Chapter XVII. Babylon and Her Relation to the Beast 



The Judgment 

1 And there came one of 
the seven angels that had 
the seven bowls and spake 
with me, saying, Come 
hither. I will shew thee 
the judgment of the great 
harlot that sitteth upon 

2 many waters; with whom 
the kings of the earth com- 
mit fornication, and they 
that dwell in the earth were 
made drunken with the 
wine of her fornication. 



of Worldly Lust 

And one. of the seven manifesta- 
tions of Truth, which will finally de- 
stroy all error, caused me to see in 
vision the punishment which will 
finally overwhelm Worldly Lust, 
which holds in idolatrous service 
many nations and peoples (see verse 
i S ) : with which, and through which, 
the great men of the world have 
been untrue to God, and all the in- 
habitants of the world have been 
intoxicated with the sinful pleasures 
of Lust. 



A Vision of the Great Harlot 

<;n T seemed to be transported into 
3 And he carried me away 



in the spirit into a wilder 
ness: and I saw a woman 
sitting upon a scarlet-col- 
oured beast, full of names 
of blasphemy, having seven 



a state of consciousness apart from 
the ordinary; and I saw Lust upheld 
by a vast world-organization (in- 
cluding the worldly churdi_^nd_the 



^^ilie^Tevi., as predicted at the end-of verse 17 



354 



REVELATION INTERPRETED XVII:4-11 



Amended Revised Version 

4 heads and ten horns. And 
the woman was arrayed in 
purple and scarlet, and 
decked with gold and pre- 
cious stones and pearls, hav- 
ing in her hand a golden 
cup full of abominations, 
even the unclean things of 

5 her fornication, and upon 
her forehead a name writ- 
ten, MYSTERY, BABY- 
LON THE GREAT, THE 
MOTHER OF THE HAR- 
LOTS AND OF THE 
ABOMINATIONS 

6 OF THE EARTH. And I 
saw the woman drunken 
with the blood of the saints, 
and with the blood of the 
martyrs of Jesus. And when 
I saw her, I wondered with 

7 a great wonder. And the an- 
gel said unto me, Wherefore 
didst thou wonder? I will 
tell thee the mystery of the 
woman, and of the beast 
that carrieth her, which hath 
the seven heads and the ten 

8 horns. The beast that thou 
sawest was, and is not ; and 
is about to come up out of 
the abyss, and to go into 
perdition. And they that 
dwell on the earth shall 
wonder, they whose name 
hath not been written in the 
book of life from the foun- 
dation of the world, when 
they behold the beast, how 
that he was, and is not, and 

9 shall come. Here is the 
mind which hath wisdom. 
The seven heads are seven 
mountains, on which the 

ro woman sitteth : and they are 
seven kings ; the five are 
fallen, and one is, the other 
is not yet come ; and when 
he cometh, he must con- 

ii tinue a little while. And 
the beast that was, and is 
not, is himself also an 



Suggestive Paraphrase 
worldly state), making blasphemous 
claims to authority, and manifest in 
all empires and kingdoms of the 
world. And Lust seemed arrayed in 
purple and scarlet color, and decked 
with gold and precious stones and 
pearls, the licentious pleasures which 
it offers appearing fair from their 
outward appearance and promise. 
And Worldly Lust may be briefly 
characterized thus : Its origin and 
nature are mysterious : it seems 
wicked and powerful as Babylon ; it 
is the parent of all apostasy from 
God and of all the wickedness of 
men. And I saw Lust as fairly in- 
toxicated with the slaughter of holy 
men, and of witnesses of Christ: and 
I was amazed beyond measure at 
what I saw. And then the vision 
seemed to inquire, Why are you 
amazed and mystified? I will inter- 
pret for you the significance of Lust, 
and of the worldly organization that 
upholds it, and is manifest in all 
worldly empires and kingdoms. 
Worldly organization seems to be 
but is not, (appears, but is unreal) ; 
and comes from nothingness, and 
shall go to destruction and nothing- 
ness ; and all except those who have 
spiritual understanding are astonished 
and awestruck at the seeming power 
of worldly government, though it ac- 
tually is unreal. Now here is the 
understanding of these things. All 
phases of worldly government are 
the supports of Lust, and they are 
rulers in human consciousness, where 
a large portion of them have lost 
their power, but a portion is very ac- 
tive, and a portion is yet to become 
active, and will continue active for 
a time. And worldly government, 
though unreal, will continue in evi- 
dence after its more specific mani- 
festations have passed away, but will 



XVII : 12-18 



TEXT AND PARAPHRASE 



355 



Amended Revised Version 
eighth, and is of the seven; 
and he goeth into perdition. 

12 And the ten horns that thou 
sawest are ten kings, which 
have received no kingdom 
as yet; but they receive au- 
thority as kings, with the 

13 beast, for one hour. These 
have one mind, and they 
give their power and author- 

14 ity unto the beast. These 
shall war against the Lamb, 
and the Lamb shall over- 
come them, for he is Lord 
of lords, and King of kings ; 
and they also shall overcome 
that are with him, called and 

15 chosen and faithful. And 
he saith unto me, The wa- 
ters which thou sawest, 
where the harlot sitteth, are 
peoples, and multitudes, and 

16 nations, and tongues. And 
the ten horns which thou 
sawest, and the beast, these 
shall hate the harlot, and 
shall make her desolate and 
naked, and shall eat her 
flesh, and shall burn her ut- 

17 terly with fire. For God 
did put in their hearts to do 
his mind, and to come to 
one mind, and to give their 
kingdom unto the beast, un- 
til the words of God should 

18 be accomplished. And the 
woman whom thou sawest 
is the great city, which 
reigneth over the kings of 
the earth. 



Suggestive Paraphrase 
ultimately go to destruction. And 
worldly government will take form 
as all kingdoms, which have not ap- 
peared as yet; and they will repre- 
sent worldly authority for a short 
period. These will all agree in this, 
that they will bolster up worldly or- 
ganization and government. These will 
strive against the truth, but Truth 
will overcome them : for Truth is 
Lord of lords, and king of kings : 
and they that side with Truth have 
heard and chosen Truth, and are 
faithful thereto. And the vision 
made known to me, that the support 
of Lust is found in the service of 
the multitudes of humanity. But man- 
kind will ultimately turn against 
Lust, and leave it without support, 
and Truth apprehended will strip it 
of its gauds, and will consume its 
seeming substance, and will reduce 
it to nothingness. For at last men 
will open their hearts to God, to ful- 
fil His will, though, before then, 
they will agree in recognizing the au- 
thority of worldly organization, un- 
til such time as the purposes of God 
shall be made evident. And Worldly 
Lust is the great mental habitation, 
in which, and in subservience to 
which, dwell the great men of this 
world. 



356 REVELATION INTERPRETED XVIII : 1-12 



Chapter XVIII. Fallen Babylon 

Note. — // it be remembered that "Babylon" symbolizes Worldly Lust, 
the vision or prophetic perception presented in this chapter will not 
need further paraphrasing. 

i After these things I saw another angel coming down out of 
heaven, having great authority; and the earth was lightened with his 
glory. 

The Wickedness of Lust 

2 And he cried with a mighty voice, saying, Fallen, fallen is Babylon 
the great, and is become a habitation of devils, and a hold of every 

3 unclean spirit, and a hold of every unclean and hateful bird. For by 
the wine of the ardor (wrath) of her fornication all the nations are 
fallen ; and the kings of the earth committed fornication with her, 
and the merchants of the earth waxed rich by the power of her 
wantonness. 

How Christ's People are to Deal With Lust 

4 And I heard another voice from heaven, saying, Come forth, my 
people, out of her, that ye have no fellowship with her sins, and 

5 that ye receive not of her scourgings (plagues) : for her sins have 
reached even unto heaven, and God hath remembered her iniquities. 

6 Render unto her even as she rendered, and double unto her the 
cfouble according to her works : in the cup which she mingled. 

7 mingle unto her double. How much soever she glorified herself, 
and waxed wanton, so much give her of torment and mourning : 
for she saith in her heart, I sit a queen, and am no widow, and shall 
in no wise see mourning. 

The Destruction of Lust Foretold 

8 Therefore in one day shall her scourgings (plagues) come, death, 
and mourning, and famine ; and she shall be utterly burned with 
fire; for strong is the Lord God which judged her. 

Grief of the Worldly 

Sorrow and Terror of the Ruling Class 

9 And the kings of the earth, who committed fornication and lived 
wantonly with her, shall weep and wail over her, when they look 

io upon the smoke of her burning, standing afar off for the fear of 
her torment, saying, Woe, woe, the great city, Babylon, the strong 
city! for in one hour is thy judgment come. 

Sorrow and Terror of the Business Class 

ii And the merchants of the earth weep and mourn over her, for 

12 no man buyeth their merchandise any more; merchandise of gold, 

and silver, and precious stones, and pearls, and fine linen, and purple, 

and silk, and scarlet ; and all thyine wood, and every vessel of ivory, 

and every vessel made of most precious wood, and of brass, and 



XVIII : 13-24 TEXT AND PARAPHRASE 35: 



13 iron, and marble; and cinnamon, and spice, and incense, and oint- 
ment, and frankincense, and wine, and oil, and fine flour, and wheat, 
and cattle, and sheep; and merchandise of horses and chariots and 

14 slaves; and lives (souls) of men. And the fruits which thy soul 
lusted after are gone from thee, and all things that were dainty and 
sumptuous are perished from thee, and men shall find them no 

15 more at all. The merchants of these things, who were made rich 
by her, shall stand afar off for the fear of her torment, weeping 

16 and mourning; saying, Woe, woe, the great city, she that was 
arrayed in fine linen and purple and scarlet, and decked with gold 

17 and precious stones and pearl! for in one hour so great riches is 
made desolate. 

Sorrow and Terror of the Working Class 

And every shipmaster, and every one that saileth any whither, 
and mariners, and as many as gain their living by sea, stood afar off, 

18 and cried and cried out as they looked upon the smoke of her burn- 

19 ing, saying, What city is like the great city? And they cast dust on 
their heads, and cried, weeping and mourning, saying, Woe, woe, 
the great city, wherein were made rich all that had their ships in 
the sea by reason of her costliness; for in one hour she is made 
desolate. 

Rejoicing of the Saints 

20 Rejoice over her, thou heaven, and ye saints, and ye apostles, 
and ye prophets; for God hath judged your judgment on her. 

The Destruction of Lust Complete 

21 And a strong angel took up a stone as it were a great millstone, 
and cast it into the sea, saying, Thus with a mighty fall shall 
Babylon, the great city, be cast down, and shall be found no more 

22 at all. And the voice of harpers and minstrels and flute players and 
trumpeters shall be heard no more at all in thee ; and no craftsman, 
of whatsoever craft, shall be found any more at all in thee; and 

23 the voice of a millstone shall be heard no more at all in thee; and 
the light of a lamp shall shine no more at all in thee ; and the voice 
of the bridegroom and of the bride shall be heard no more, at all 
in thee ; for thy merchants were the princes of the earth ; for with 

24 thy sorcery were all the nations deceived. And in her was found the 
blood of prophets and of saints, and of all that have been slain upon 
the earth. 



358 



REVELATION INTERPRETED XIX : 1-8 



Chapter XIX. Triumph of the Lamb 
Rejoicing of the Spiritually-minded 



Amended Revised Version 
i After these things I heard 
as it were a great voice of 
a great multitude in heaven, 
saying, Hallelujah; Salva- 
tion, and glory, and power, 

2 belong to our God : for 
true and righteous are his 
judgments; for he hath 
judged the great harlot, 
which did corrupt the earth 
with her fornication, and 
he hath avenged the blood 
of his servants at her hand. 

3 And a second time they say, 
Hallelujah. And her smoke 
goeth up unto the ages of 
the ages (for ever and 

4 ever). And the four and 
twenty elders and the four 
living creatures fell down 
and worshipped God that 
sitteth on the throne, say- 

5 ing, Amen; Hallelujah. And 
a voice came forth from the 
•throne, saying, Give praise 

to our God, all ye his serv- 
ants, ye that fear him, the 

6 small and the great. And 
I heard as it were the voice 
of a great multitude, and as 
the voice of many waters, 
and as the voice of mighty 
thunders, saying, Hallelu- 
jah: for the Lord our God, 

7 the Almighty reigneth. Let 
us rejoice and be exceeding 
glad, and let us give the 
glory unto him : for the 
marriage of the Lamb is 
come, and his wife hath 

8 made herself ready. And it 
was given unto her that 
she should array herself in 
fine linen, bright and pure : 
for the fine linen is the 
righteous acts of the saints. 



Suggestive Paraphrase 
And after this I seemed to hear 
the collective testimony of a great 
multitude of men who had attained 
spiritual consciousness, saying Alle- 
luia : Let the salvation of the 
world, and glory, and honor, and 
power, be ascribed unto the Lord our 
God : for true and right are His 
standards; by which have been judg- 
ed and found wanting Worldly Lust, 
which corrupted mankind with its 
apostasy from God, but which has 
been punished for all its persecution 
of His servants. And again I seemed 
to hear them cry, Alleluia ; for the 
destruction of Lust is complete. And 
the whole spiritual church humbled 
itself before creative Mind enthroned 
with power, saying Amen ; Alleluia. 
And I seemed to hear the Holy Spirit 
saying, Praise our God, all ye who 
serve and reverence Him, both great 
and small. And I heard the testi- 
mony of a great multitude, in many 
languages, and with great volume, 
saying, Alleluia: for the all-powerful 
God has triumphed. Let us be glad 
and rejoice, and give honor to Him; 
for the time has come for the human 
consciousness as the church to be 
wholly united, having put on Christ. 
For it has been granted to human 
consciousness to become purified 
with the righteousness which belongs 
to God's people. 



XIX : 9-15 



TEXT AND PARAPHRASE 



359 



Doing Honor to God's Messenger Forbidden 



Amended Revised Version 
9 And he saith unto me, 
Write, Blessed are they 
which are bidden to the 
marriage supper of the 
Lamb. And he saith unto 
me, These are true words of 
io God, And I fell down be- 
fore his feet to do honor to 
(worship) him. And he 
saith unto me, See thou do 
it not : I am a fellow-ser- 
vant with thee and with thy 
brethren that hold the testi- 
mony of Jesus : do honor to 
(worship) God: for the tes- 
timony of Jesus is the spirit 
of prophecy. 



Suggestive Paraphrase 
And the voice said to me, 
Write, Fortunate are they who are 
prepared to put on Christ. This 
is truly a message from God. And 
I humbled myself before the divine, 
incorporeal messenger. But it was 
revealed unto me, that I ought not 
to do this : for this messenger, or 
truth-revealing message, was but 
serving God, even as was I myself, 
and those of my brethren who have 
the spirit of prophecy. I saw that I 
ought to worship the Creator only : 
for to bear testimony to the Christ 
requires the spirit of prophecy. 



A Vision of the Impersonal Mediatorial Christ 



ii And I saw the heaven 
opened; and behold, a white 
horse, and he that sat there- 
on, called Faithful and 
True; and in righteousness 
he doth judge and make 

12 war. And his eyes are a 
flame of fire, and upon his 
head are many diadems ; 
and he hath a name written, 
which no one knoweth but 

13 he himself. And he is ar- 
rayed in a garment 
sprinkled with blood : and 
his name is called the Word 

14 of God. And the armies 
which are in heaven fol- 
lowed him upon white 
horses, clothed in fine lin- 

15 en, white and pure. And 
out of his mouth proceed- 
eth a sharp sword, that 
with it he should smite the 
nations : and he shall rule 
them with a rod of iron: 
and he treadeth the wine- 
press of the ardor (fierce- 
ness) of the seal (wrath) 



And there was disclosed to me the 
eternal mental realm, in which all 
pure ideas are active (See chap. 
6:2) ; and the Christ, up-borne by all 
pure ideas, was declared faithful and 
true. His standards are right, and 
with right does he make war against 
evil. The vision of the Christ-con- 
sciousness is very clear, quick and 
penetrating; and is endowed with all 
authority ; and nobody understands 
his character or manifestation but he 
himself.* And his appearance is the 
manifestation of Life : and he is 
properly described as the complete ut- 
terance t of God. And the mul- 
titudes of men which have attained 
spiritual consciousness follow the 
Christ, up-borne by pure thoughts, 
and mentally clothed with righteous- 
ness (See v. 8). And the message 
proceeding from the Christ is very 
"quick and powerful," and smites the 
evil which has attached itself to the 
nations of men : and the Christ shall 
rule the nations according to the in- 
flexible Principle: and he relentlessly 
excludes evil from harmony, and re- 



* Men do not understand the Christ until they "put on Christ." 
t Outer-ance. 



360 



REVELATION INTERPRETED XIX : 16-21 



Amended Revised Version 
16 of Almighty God. And he 
hath on his garment and 
on his thigh a name writ- 
ten, KING OF KINGS, 
AND LORD OF LORDS. 



Suggestive Paraphrase 
mands it to its own realm of discord 
and destruction. Both in his appear- 
ance and in his substance, Christ is 
manifest as, KING OF KINGS, 
AND LORD OF LORDS. 



The Christ Summons All Spiritual Ideas to Destroy the Seeming 
Substance of the Ungodly 



17 And I saw a lone (an) 
angel standing in the sun ; 
and he cried with a loud 
voice, saying to all the birds 
that fly in mid heaven, 
Come and be gathered to- 
gether unto the great sup- 

18 per of God; that ye may 
eat the flesh of kings, and 
the flesh of captains, and 
the flesh of mighty men, 
and the flesh of horses and 
of them that sit thereon, 
and the flesh of all men, 
both free and bond, and 
small and great. 



And I seemed to see the Christ 
established in Mind and powerfully 
proclaiming to all the right ideas 
which are in the mental realm, Pre- 
pare yourselves to do the work set 
for you in accord with your nature 
as manifestations of God : that you 
may utterly destroy the seeming sub- 
stance of all mortals, whether as 
bodies or as false mentalities, irre- 
spective of their rank according to 
worldly sense. 



Worldly Government and the Worldly Church and Their Adherents 

Destroyed 



19 And I saw the beast, and 
the kings of the earth, and 
their armies, gathered to- 
gether to make war against 
him that sat upon the horse 

20 and against his army. And 
the beast was taken, and 
with him the false prophet 
that wrought the signs in 
his sight, wherewith he de- 
ceived them that had re- 
ceived the mark of the 
beast, and them that wor- 
shipped his image : they 
twain were cast alive into 
the lake of fire that burneth 

21 with brimstone : and the 
rest were killed with the 
sword of him that sat upon 
the horse, even the sword 
which came forth out of his 
mouth; and all the birds 
were filled with their flesh. 



And I saw worldly organization, 
and the rulers of all worldly king- 
doms, and their armies, mustered to 
make both mental and physical war 
against the Christ, and those who fol- 
low him. And I saw that worldly 
government will be overthrown, and 
along with it the worldly church (see 
chap. 13:11-14) that wrought seeming 
wonders in the presence of worldly 
government, and thus deceived those 
who were loyal to worldly authority, 
and who worshipped the man-made 
sense of God. Both worldly govern- 
ment and the worldly church will be 
utterly destroyed. And the remnant 
of mortal beliefs serving them will 
be destroyed by the manifestation of 
the • Christ : and all rierht ideas will 
accomolish the destruction of the 
seeming substance or appearance of 
evil. 



XX : 1-6 



TEXT AND PARAPHRASE 



361 



Chapter XX. The Millennium and the Final Judgment 
Discord Suppressed for a Long Season 



Amended Revised Version 



And I saw an angel com- 
ing down out of heaven, 
having the key of the abyss 
and a great chain in his 
hand. And he laid hold on 
the dragon, the old serpent, 
which is the Devil and 
Satan, and bound him for 
a thousand years, and cast 
him into the abyss, and 
shut it, and sealed it over 
him, that he should deceive 
the nations no more, until 
the thousand years should 
be finished: after this he 
must be loosed for a little 
time. 

The First Resurrection 



Suggestive Paraphrase 
And I saw that the Christ-mind is 
able to uncover the most hidden depths 
of error (nothingness), and, clothed 
with power, will reduce to subjection 
primeval error, which is spoken of 
as a dragon, an old serpent, the devil 
and satan, and will hold it in subjec- 
tion for a long but indefinite period, 
and will keep it in inactivity till the 
end of this period: and after that, 
error will become active again for a 
short time. 



All men on earth, having become highly spiritual, now demonstrate 
the resurrection of the saintly among the so-called "dead," and they 
join in living harmoniously on earth with the truth in consciousness 



4 And I saw thrones, and 
they sat upon them, and 
judgment was given unto 
them : and I saw the souls 
of them that had been be- 
headed for the testimony 
of Jesus, and for the word 
of God, and such as wor- 
shipped not the beast, 
neither his image, and re- 
ceived not the mark upon 
their forehead and upon 
their hand ; and they lived, 
and reigned with Christ a 

5 thousand years. The rest 
of the dead lived not 
until the thousand years 
should be finished. This is 
the first resurrection. 

6 Blessed and holy is he that 
hath part in the first resur- 
rection : over these the sec- 
ond death hath no power; 
but they shall be priests of 
God and of Christ, and shall 
reign with him a thousand 
years. 



And I saw that authority and power 
will be given those who were be- 
headed for exercising the spirit of 
prophecy and for loyalty to the word 
of God, who had not given either in- 
ward or outward allegiance to world- 
ly government, when it conflicted 
with God's government, and who had 
not worshipped the false sense of 
God ; and I saw that these will live 
and reign on earth with the Christ or 
truth in consciousness during the 
millennial period ; for these will be 
the first to be raised from the dead. 
But the remainder of the dead will 
not be raised until after the millen- 
nial period is finished. Blessed and 
holy are those who will be raised up 
first : they are so pure that the final 
destruction of evil (See v. 14) will 
not affect them at all, but they will 
reign as priests of God and His 
Christ during the thousand years. 



362 



REVELATION INTERPRETED XX : 7-12 



The Return of Discord 



Amended Revised Version 

7 And when the thousand 
years are finished, Satan 
shall be loosed out of his 

8 prison, and shall come forth 
to deceive the nations which 
are in the four corners of 
the earth, Gog and Magog, 
to gather them together to 
the war : the number of 
them is as the sand of the 

9 sea.- And they went up over 
the breadth of the earth, 
and compassed the camp of 
the saints about, and the be- 
loved city : and fire came 
down out of heaven, and 
devoured them. 



Suggestive Paraphrase 
Then discord will become active 
again.* And satan will deceive the 
nations all over the earth, Gog and 
Magog, and will muster them for 
battle, in numbers like the sands of 
the sea. And the followers of error 
will surround the followers of Christ, 
and will mentally camp against the 
spiritual consciousness : but the truth 
of God will be mentally enforced 
against the minions of error and will 
destroy them. 



* The probable occasion of this will be 
that many will resist the demonstration 
over the last phase of error, namely, the 
belief in matter and separate, corporeal 
selfhood. 



io And the devil that de- 
ceived them was cast into 
the lake of fire and brim- 
stone, where are also the 
beast and the false prophet; 
and they shall be tormented 
day and night unto the ages 
of the ages (for ever and 
ever). 



Discord Finally Destroyed 

And the fundamental error that de- 
ceived them will be cast to destruc- 
tion, as worldly government and the 
worldly church had been before it. 



The Destruction of Matter 



ii And I saw a great white 
throne, and him that sat 
upon it, from whose face 
the earth and the heaven 
fled away ; and there was 
found no place for them. 



And I saw enthroned in pure spir- 
itual power the creative Mind, be- 
fore whose militant manifestation the 
material sense of earth and heaven 
will be dissolved, so that they will 
no longer appear. 



The Final Resurrection and the Final Separating Out and Destruc- 
tion of All Accumulated Evil from the Mentalites of Men 



And I saw the dead, the 
great and the small, stand- 
ing before the throne; and 
books were opened ; and 
another book was opened ; 
which is the book of 
life: and the dead 
were judged out of the 
things which were written 



And I saw that the remainder of 
the so-called dead, whether small or 
great according to human estimate, 
will be judged according to the 
standard of God ; the records of their 
past lives* will be disclosed : and the 
laws of life will also be disclosed : and 



* The accumulations stored in their 
sub-conscious mentalities. 



XX : 13-15 



TEXT AND PARAPHRASE 



363 



Amended Revised Version 
in the books according to 

13 their works. And the sea 
gave up the dead which 
were in it ; and death and 
Hades gave up the dead 
which were in them : and 
they were judged every 
man according to their 
works. 

14 And death and Hades were 
cast into the lake of fire. 
This is the second death, 

15 even the lake of fire. And 
if any was not found writ- 
ten in the book of life it 
(he) was cast into the lake 
of fire. 



Suggestive Paraphrase 
according as the records of their lives 
shall bear comparison with the laws 
of life, will the resurrected be 
judged; for latent (subconscious) 
error will give up the dead which are 
in it; yea, the very Prince of Death 
will lose his hold upon the dead : and 
they will be judged according to the 
records of their past lives. 

Then the fundamental beliefs of 
death and discord will be destroyed. 
This destruction is spoken of as "the 
second death." (See chapter 2:11; 
chap. 20:6.) And whatsoever mental 
manifestation or activity is not found 
among the manifestations of Life 
(God) will be cast to destruction. 



(Continued on Page 371.) 



364 NOTES BY THE READER 



NOTES BY THE READER 365 



366 NOTES BY THE READER 






SECTION VII 

THE VISION OF THE SPIRITUAL, ETER- 
NAL CONSCIOUSNESS, SYMBOLIZED 
AS THE HOLY CITY, THE NEW 
JERUSALEM 

(Chap. 21:1-22:5) 

The text from the Bible is not printed here, because the 
comment upon it is comparatively brief, and because it is 
printed in connection with the paraphrase which immediately 
follows. In this paraphrase, the interpretation of the text is 
indicated clearly without explanation, except in a few points 
which call for previous comment. 

In this act of the drama, no evil characters appear as alive 
or active, and no conflict is represented. There is merely 
the description in symbolical language of the consciousness 
of the spiritual man. There is occasional mention of evil and 
evil-doers, but such mention is made only to bring out the 
facts and the blessedness of spiritual consciousness by way 
of contrast with the material factor in the human order of 
consciousness. 

Chapter 21 : 1-4 describes the eternal, spiritual heaven and 
earth and the conditions of the eternal spiritual consciousness. 
The eternal heaven and earth are spoken of as "new" merely 
because they are new to humanity's advancing understanding, 
— just as the western hemisphere is spoken of to this day as 
"the new world", because it was discovered later, although it 
is as old in point of existence as any part of the earth.* 

* Mr. Rawson has written : "The word 'new' is a doublet for 'now,' 
and it is much more accurate to speak of the 'now earth' and the 'now 
heaven.' There is no material earth and no material heaven. At best 
there is only the belief of matter which hides the real earth (spiritual 
ideas) and the real heaven (the perfect state of consciousness) 
from us." 

367 



368 REVELATION INTERPRETED XX: 2-9 

"The first heaven and the first earth" , spoken of as passing 
away, are the false material concept of heaven and earth. 
This false material concept is merely a factor of mortal belief, 
as is also the "sea", which is the symbol of turbulence and 
division, and which is also spoken of as passing away. 

"The holy city, new Jerusalem", is the spiritualized con- 
sciousness, coming down to human beings from God out of 
the realm of harmony. This is, of course, not a coming down 
from a higher level of space to a lower, but an impartation of 
higher, heavenly consciousness to the lower order of human 
thought, destroying that lower order. 

Verse 3. "The tabernacle of God is with men." This 
means that man now realizes himself as dwelling in God, 
infinite Mind. 

Verse 4. "And God (the realized presence and power of 
eternal good) shall wipe away all tears from their eyes" ; and 
the verse goes on to again prophesy the final destruction of 
evil. 

Verses 5-7. "And he that sat upon the throne." The term 
"throne" signifies an exalted state of spiritual consciousness. 
In this case, God is represented as sitting upon the throne. 
"The fountain of the water of life" is everlasting truth, which 
washes away error, and, as "the bread from heaven" feeds 
the consciousness of man. 

8 "But the fearful and unbelieving, and the abominable, and mur- 
derers, and whoremongers, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, 
shall have their part in the lake which burnetii with fire and brimstone: 
which is the second death." 

Verse 8. Here, again, out of chronological sequence, is 
prophesied the destruction of mortals ; that is, of the mortal 
factors in the minds of human beings. "The lake which 
burneth with fire and brimstone" is the symbol of absolute 
destruction, and so is again spoken of as "the second death." 

9 "And there came unto me one of the seven angels which had 
the seven vials full of the seven last plagues, and talked with me, 
saying, Come hither, I will shew thee the bride, the Lamb's wife." 



XXI : 10-20 SECTION VI 369 

Verse 9. The angels here spoken of refer back to chapters 
15 and 16. "The bride, the Lamb's wife", spoken of in this 
verse, is the spiritual consciousness. 

10 "And he carried me azvay in the spirit to a great and high 
mountain, and shelved me that great city, the holy Jerusalem, descend- 
ing out of heaven from God." 

Verse 10. "The great and high mountain", spoken of in 
this verse, is a spiritual state of consciousness, sufficiently 
exalted so that, from its height, the beholder could understand 
all spiritual things. "That great city, the holy Jerusalem", 
is again the spiritual consciousness, the consciousness of God. 
The glories of this consciousness are spoken of under what 
seems to our western thought rather extravagant images in 
verses 11 to 21. In the chapter on "The Apocalypse", in 
"Science and Health," Mrs. Eddy has given a very beautiful 
and enlightening interpretation of some of these verses. 

16-17 "And the city lieth four square, and the length is as large 
as the breadth: and he measured the city with the reed, twelve thousand 
furlongs. The length and the breadth and the height of it are equal. 
And he measured the zvall thereof, an hundred and forty and four 
cubits, according to the measure of a man, that is, of the angel." 

Verses 16-17. The significance of the distances mentioned 
in these two verses has been fully discussed in the comment 
on verse 20 of chapter 14 (which see on page 323). 

Verses 19, 20. "The twelve precious stones are not all iden- 
tified with certainty, as some of the Greek names are dubious ; 
but, given in the modern terms generally applied to them they 
are probably as follows: 1, opal; 2, lapis-lazuli ; 3, chalce- 
dony; 4, aqua-marine; 5, sardonyx; 6, carnelian ; 7, topaz; 8, 
beryl; 9, chrysolith; 10, chrysoprase; 11, hyacinth; 12, 
amethyst. Placed in a circle these colored stones form ap- 
proximately the prismatic scale, and are thus identical with the 
rainbow (iv: 3) which encircles the throne of God."* 



"The Apocalypse Unsealed," page 214. 



370 REVELATION INTERPRETED XXI : 22-XXII : 5 

Verses 22-27. In these verses we are informed that the 
city of God, the spiritual consciousness, has and needs in it no 
material structure, nor any material source of light, and 
that that state of consciousness is constantly lighted spiritually 
by God Himself. 

Chapter 22:1-5. These verses are a continuation of the 
description of the spiritual consciousness. "The leaves of the 
tree" , the ideas of truth, are for the overcoming of error, 
"for the healing of the nations." 






REVISED TRANSLATION AND SUGGES- 
TIVE PARAPHRASE 

SECTION VII 

THE ETERNAL UNIVERSE 

Chapter XXI 

Humanity Attains Realization of God and Heaven 

Amended Revised Version 
i And I saw a new heaven 
and a new earth: for the 
first heaven and the first 
earth are passed away ; 
and the sea is no more. 

2 And I saw the holy city, 
new Jerusalem, coming 
down out of heaven from 
God, made ready as a bride 
adorned for her husband. 

3 And I heard a great voice 
out of the throne saying, 
Behold, the tabernacle of 
God is with men, and he 
shall dwell with them, and 
they shall be his peoples, 
and God himself shall be 
with them, and be their 

4 God : and he shall wipe 
away every tear from their 
eyes ; and death shall be no 
more ; neither shall there be 
mourning, nor crying, nor 
pain, any more : the first 
things are passed away. 



Suggestive Paraphrase 
And I perceived the kingdom of 
heaven that is wholly spiritual, the 
universe of divine ideas, the material 
sense of heaven, earth and sea having 
passed away. And I, John, beheld 
the celestial city, the redeemed and 
purified consciousness of mankind, 
approaching union with divine Mind 
in harmony, a consciousness having 
the beauty of good. And there came 
to me a great revelation in conscious- 
ness that men will dwell with God, 
good, and they will be His people : 
and good realized and demonstrated 
will wipe away and destroy all that is 
un-ideal : for the reign of evil will 
pass away. 



A New Sense of the Universe 



And he that sitteth on the 
throne said, Behold, I make 
all things new. And he 
saith, Write : for these 
words are faithful and true. 
And he said unto me. They 
are come to pass. I am the 
Alpha and the Omega, the 
beginning and the end. I will 
give unto him that is athirst 
of the fountain of the water 



And mind enthroned in power said, 
Behold, I give mankind a new and 
eternal sense of being, a spiritual 
sense to displace their old, false, ma- 
terial sense. And Mind said unto me, 
Write : for these words are true and 
faithful. My works are eternal, 
changeless, and therefore finished. I 
am the everlasting. I will give unto 
him who really desires them the ideas 

371 



372 



REVELATION INTERPRETED XXI: 7-14 



Amended Revised Version 

7 of life freely. He that over- 
cometh shall inherit these 
things; and I will be his 
God, and he shall be my son. 

8 But for the fearful, and un- 
believing, and abominable, 
and murderers, and forni- 
cators, and sorcerers, and 
idolaters, and all liars, their 
part shall be in the lake that 
burnetii with fire and brim- 
stone ; which is the second 
death. 



Suggestive Paraphrase 
of Truth and Love freely ; and these 
shall support his consciousness or life. 
He that overcometh his false sense of 
matter and evil shall gain the realiza- 
tion of all that is true and good ; and 
he shall know that I am his God, and 
that he is my son. But all discordant 
and sinful dispositions and habits 
shall be removed from the mentalities 
of men, and shall go to destruction : 
this will be the final destruction of 
evil. 



A Symbolical Description of the Spiritual Consciousness 



9 And there came one of 
the seven angels who had 
the seven bowls, who were 
laden with the seven last 
scourges (plagues) ; and he 
spake with me, saying, Come 
hither, I will shew thee the 
bride, the wife of the Lamb. 

io And he carried me away in 
the Spirit to a mountain 
great and high, and showed 
me the holy city of Jerusa- 
lem, coming down out of 

ii heaven from God, having 
the glory of God : her light 
was like unto a stone most 
precious, as it were a jas- 
per stone, clear as crystal: 

12 having a wall great and 
high; having twelve gates, 
and at the gates twelve an- 
gels ; and names written 
thereon, which are the 
names of the twelve tribes 
of the children of Israel: 

13 on the east were three 
gates; and on the north 
three gates ; and on the 
south three gates; and on 

14 the west three gates. And 
the wall of the city had 
twelve fountains, and on 
them twelve names of the 
twelve apostles of the 

Lamb. 



And there came unto me one of the 
visions which had formerly revealed 
to me* the full measure of God's re- 
demptive power, saying, Elevate your 
thought, and I will show you the 
spiritualized consciousness of man- 
kind which is wedded to Christ, 
Truth. And this vision raised me 
into a very exalted state of thought, 
and showed me the celestial city, the 
immaterial realm, to which human 
consciousness will attain, having the 
glory of God : and this manifesta- 
tion of Truth is of supreme value 
and exceedingly clear, devoid of ig- 
norance, mystery, or evil ; and this 
spiritual consciousness excludes all 
evil thoughts and dispositions, but is 
open on every side, so that all men 
can enter, as soon as they have sepa- 
rated evil from themselves, and the 
entrance is guarded by twelve (all) 
right ideas, so that no evil can enter. 
There is entrance for men upon 
every side, from every condition of 
need. And the consciousness exclud- 
ing evil is founded on the teachings 
of the twelve apostles of Christ 
Jesus. 



* See chapters 15 and 16. 



XXI : 15-21 TEXT AND PARAPHRASE 



373 



A Symbolical Measuring of the Spiritual Consciousness 



Amended Revised Version 

15 And he that spake with 
me had for a measure a 
golden reed to measure the 
city, and the gates thereof, 

16 and the wall thereof. And 
the city lieth foursquare, 
and the length thereof is as 
great as the breadth : and he 
measured the city with the 
reed, twelve thousand fur- 
longs : the length and 
the breadth and the heighth 

17 thereof are equal. And he 
measured the wall thereof, 
a hundred and forty and 
four cubits, according to 
the measure of a man, that 
is, of an angel. 



Suggestive Paraphrase 
And I was shown the Principle by 
which to test and understand the true 
consciousness, and the mental ave- 
nues of entrance thereto, and the ac- 
tion thereof in excluding falsehood 
and evil. And the spiritual conscious- 
ness is genuine, flawless, the same 
from all points of view, with nothing 
concealed or hidden, infinite. And 
the consciousness which excludes evil 
is spiritual in extent, that is, infinite, 
according to the measure of spiritual 
man, in God's image and likeness. 



The Protection, the Entrances and the Mental Pathways of the 
Spiritual Consciousness 



18 And the building of the 
wall thereof was of jasper: 
and the city was pure gold, 

19 like unto pure glass. The 
foundations of the wall of 
the city were adorned with 
all manner of precious 
stones. The first foundation 
was jasper; the second, 
sapphire; the third, chalce- 
dony ; the fourth, emerald ; 

20 the fifth, sardonyx; the 
sixth, sardius ; the seventh, 
chrysolite; the eighth, beryl; 
the ninth, topaz ; the tenth, 
chrysoprase ; the eleventh, 
jacinth; the twelfth, ame- 

21 thyst. And the twelve gates 
were twelve pearls ; each 
one of the several gates was 
of one pearl : and the street 
of the city was pure gold, 
as it were transparent glass. 



And the substance of the spiritual 
consciousness which excludes evil is 
exceeding precious, mentally brilliant 
and transparent. And the spiritual 
consciousness excluding evil rests up- 
on or includes every idea of Truth 
and good, each having its own indi- 
viduality, and being of exceeding 
value and beauty, and a necessary 
part of the complete structure of 
Mind. And all avenues of approach 
to the spiritual consciousness are pure 
and clean. These avenues are all 
right ideas, each having its own in- 
dividuality, and being one. The paths 
in Mind are beautiful and clear. 



374 REVELATION INTERPRETED XXI : 22-XXII : 2 



The Structure and Illumination of the Spiritual Consciousness 



Amended Revised Version 

22 And I saw no temple 
therein : for the Lord God 
the Almighty, and the 
Lamb, are the temple there- 

23 of. And the city hath no 
need of the sun, neither of 
the moon, to shine upon it: 
for the glory of God did 
lighten it, and the lamp 
thereof is the Lamb. 



Suggestive Paraphrase 
There is no material structure in 
the celestial city, but the spiritual 
consciousness dwells and worships 
in God (Mind) and His Christ. And 
the spiritual realm has no need or 
place for material light; but is men- 
tally illumined by divine Mind and its 
reflection, the Christ. 



Inhabitants of the Spiritual Consciousness 



24 And the nations shall 
walk amidst the light there- 
of; and the kings of the 
earth do bring their glory 

25 into it. And the gates there- 
of shall in no wise be shut 
by day (for there shall be 

26 no night there) : and they 
shall bring the glory and 
the honour of the nations 

27 into it: and there shall in 
no wise enter into it any- 
thing unclean, or he that 
maketh an abomination and 
a lie : but only they which 
are written in the Lamb's 
book of life. 



And man redeemed shall dwell in 
the light of spiritual understanding: 
and the kings of the earth will sur- 
render their personal sense of glory, 
in order that glory may be given to 
God alone. There is never a time 
when the avenues of approach to God 
are either closed or darkened to those 
who earnestly desire to enter. All 
worldly glory shall be laid down and 
surrendered before the glory of Mind. 
Neither evil nor falsehood can have 
part or place in the celestial city, but 
only the ideas of Truth and good, 
and those who have identified them- 
selves with them. 



Chapter XXII 
Food and Drink in Spiritual Consciousness 



And he shewed me a river 
of water of life, bright as 
crystal, proceeding out of 
the throne of God, and of 
the Lamb. In the midst of 
the street thereof, and on 
either side of the river, was 
the tree of life, bearing 
twelve (manner of) fruits, 
yielding its fruit every 
month : and the leaves of 
the tree were for the heal- 
ing of the nations. 



And I perceived the stream of di- 
vine ideas flowing from God to man, 
giving to man that knowledge of God 
which is life eternal. Omnipresent in 
the immaterial city is Mind, which al- 
ways gives forth every kind of good 
and true ideas : and these ideas 
cleanse and heal the nations of men. 



XXII : 3-5 



TEXT AND PARAPHRASE 



375 



Bliss of the Spiritual Consciousness 



Amended Revised Version 

3 And there shall be no 
curse any more : and the 
throne of God and of the 
Lamb shall be therein: and 
his servants shall do him 

4 service; and they shall see 
his face; and his name shall 

5 be on their foreheads. And 
there shall be night no 
more ; and they need _ no 
light of lamp, neither light 
of sun; for the Lord God 
shall give them light: and 
they shall reign for ever and 
ever. 



Suggestive Paraphrase 
And there shall be no more curse : 
but God and His Christ shall be en- 
throned; and men shall serve God. 
And men shall not be separated from 
the realization of truth and good; 
but shall acknowledge only God in 
their understanding. And there shall 
be no ignorance of evil in the spirit- 
ual consciousness ; and no need of 
material light; for the light of Mind 
is sufficient ; and man shall have ever- 
lasting dominion over all that is good 
and true. 



(Continued on Page 381.) 



376 NOTES BY THE READER 



EPILOGUE 

(Chapter 22:6-21) 

The interpretation of the most of the verses in this 
passage will be sufficiently evident as given in the paraphrase 
which follows, without additional explanation. However, it 
seems well to take special note of certain verses or groups of 
verses. 

The translation as given in the Authorized Version needs 
amending at several points, which the student can readily 
discover for himself by comparing the Authorized Version 
with the revised translation which is given in connection with 
the paraphrase, and as the basis thereof. 

Verses 6 and 7 are so similar in phraseology to the first 
three verses of the Prologue, that the interpretation of the 
Prologue is a sufficient interpretation of these first two verses 
of the Epilogue. The interpretation of verses 8 and 9 is 
practically the same as that of 19:10, which see. 

Verse 10 "And he saith unto me, Seal not the sayings of the 
prophecy of this book: for the time is at hand." 

"The injunction not to seal up the teachings has been 
followed by the Apocalyptist ; for although his scroll is writ- 
ten in veiled language, it is not 'sealed'. The Apocalypse 
surely contains its own key, and is complete in itself, coherent, 
and scrupulously accurate in every detail. . . . Though 
the growth of the inner nature is a slow process, the recog- 
nition of . . . the imminent higher mind comes upon the 
man suddenly; as Ioannes reiterates, the Logos [Greek for 
Christ-mind] comes speedily, unexpectedly, as a thief in the 
night; and when it does come there is a balancing of merits 
and demerits. If his nature is sufficiently purified, the mystic 
tree of life is his, and by means of it he enters the holy city ; 
otherwise he remains with 'those without', until he shall have 
'washed his robes.' "* 



* "The Apocalypse Unsealed," pages 219, 220. 

377 



378 REVELATION INTERPRETED XXII : 11-17 

Verse n "He that is unjust, let him be unjust still: and he which 
is filthy, let him be filthy still: and he that is righteous, let him be 
righteous still: and he that is holy, let him be holy still." 

This verse indicates that error cannot become truth, and 
that evil cannot become good. Each must continue in its own 
state until evil and error are finally destroyed. 

Verses 12-17. These verses speak of conditions prevailing 
from the time of the writer, John, until the final destruction 
of error. They are conditions that prevail today. Today, 
"they that do his commandments have a right to the tree of 
life, and may enter in through the gates into the city", — into 
the spiritual consciousness, — while outside of that city are 
the factors of mortal mind, "the dogs, the sorcerers, the forni- 
cators, the murderers, the phantom-servers, and every one 
who keeps sanctioning and acting a lie" ; but, at last, these 
are all to be destroyed, as indicated in 21 :8. 

Verse 16 "I, Jesus, have sent mine Angel, to testify unto you these 
things in the Churches. I am the root and the offspring of David, and 
the bright and morning star." 

"Jesus" without doubt connotes the mediatorial conscious- 
ness, the impersonal Christ, which is God's angel or messen- 
ger, and which, in turn, employs John as its angel or mes- 
senger. 

This eternal Christ, "the same yesterday, to-day and for- 
ever", is "the root", the eternal fact back of every man that 
cometh into the world, and so is properly spoken of as 
"the root of David." Any man who attains, as David did, 
to a high degree of the mediatorial consciousness, the spirit 
of prophecy, in a sense passes on that impersonal spiritual 
consciousness to his fellow men of future generations : hence, 
from the human standpoint, this mediatorial consciousness 
might speak of itself as "the offspring of David." This 
impersonal Christ-mind is the anointed Saviour, the way- 
shower, and so is the harbinger of the coming spiritual day: 
hence it is, to humanity, "the bright and morning star." 

Verse 17 "And the Spirit and the Bride say, Come." 






XXII : 18-21 EPILOGUE 379 

"The Spirit" is the Holy Spirit in human consciousness, 
militant against evil, and "the Bride" is the spiritual factor 
in human consciousness in its attitude of aspiring after and 
worshiping God, — it is the true, spiritual church. 

Verses 18, 19 "For I testify unto every man that heareth the words 
of the prophecy of this book, If any man shall add unto these things, 
God shall add unto him the plagues that are written in this book. And 
if any man shall take away the words of the book of this prophecy, 
God shall take away his part out of the book of life, and out of the 
holy city, and from the things which are written in this book." 

The "book" referred to in these verses is not the whole 
Bible, the various books of which had never been selected as 
especially authoritative, and had never been bound between 
two covers, at the time that John wrote; but the "book" 
referred to is this book of Revelation itself: Being the word 
of truth, it could not be altered in any way by an individual 
without that individual's straying into error. Should he do so, 
he would experience the effects of error, and would auto- 
matically exclude himself from the realm of truth and good, 
from the realm of God. However, it must not be understood 
that God would consciously punish any man, or withhold any 
good from any man. 

Verse 21 "The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with yov all. 
Amen." 



380 NOTES BY THE READER 



XXII: 6-14 TEXT AND PARAPHRASE 



381 



EPILOGUE 



Chapter XXII 



Amended Revised Version 

6 And he said unto me, 
These words are faithful 
and true : and the Lord, the 
God of the spirits of the 
prophets, sent his angel to 
shew unto his servants the 
things which must shortly be 
revealed (come to pass). 

7 And behold, I come quickly. 
Blessed is he that keepeth 
the words of the prophecy 
of this book. 

8 And I, John, am he that 
heard and saw these things. 
And when I heard and saw, 
I fell down to worship be- 
fore the -feet of the angel 
which shewed me these 

9 things. And he said unto 
me, See thou do it not : I 
am a fellow-servant with 
thee and with thy brethren 
the prophets, and with them 
which keep the words of 
this book : worship God. 

io And he saith unto me, 
Seal not up the words of the 
prophecy of this book; for 

ii the time is at hand. He that 
is unrighteous, let him do 
unrighteousness still : and 
he that is filthy, let him be 
made filthy still : and he 
that is righteous, let him do 
righteousness still : and he 
that is holy, let him be holy 

12 still. Behold, I come quick- 
ly; and my reward is with 
me, to render to each man 

13 according as his work is. I 
am the Alpha and the 
Omega, the first and the 
last, the origin and the com- 
pletion (beginning and the 

14 end). Blessed are they that 
wash their robes, that they 
may have the right (to 
come) to the tree of life, 



Suggestive Paraphrase 
And a voice said unto me, These 
sayings are faithful and true: and 
the Lord God of the holy prophets 
hath sent me unto men who are striv- 
ing to serve Him to show to them 
what things they will soon realize. 
Behold, the Christ-mind will soon be 
known among men : blessed are they 
that order their lives in accordance 
with the truth which is revealed in 
this book. And I, John, saw these 
things, and heard them. And when 
I had heard and seen, I was impelled 
to pride myself on the exaltation of 
my consciousness. Then it was said 
unto me, See that thou do not wor- 
ship the creature, but worship the 
Creator only. Do not keep to your- 
self what has been revealed to you : 
the time is ripe for it to be given to 
the world. That which is unjust, let 
it be called unjust still: and that 
which is filthy, let it be called filthy 
still : and that which is righteous, let 
it be righteous still : and that which 
is holy, let it be holy still. Mankind 
will soon approach so near to the 
Christ-mind, that the separation be- 
tween good and evil in human ex- 
perience will be made much more 
quickly than formerly ; and those 
who do right will receive their re- 
ward more quickly, and those who 
do wrong their punishment more 
quickly. I am the eternal and change- 
less. Blessed are the men who keep 
God's commandments, for they have 
a right to the knowledge of God 
which is everlasting life, and they 
enter into the spiritual consciousness. 



382 



REVELATION INTERPRETED XXII : 15-21 



Amended Revised Version 
and may enter in by the 

15 gates into the city. Without 
are the dogs, and the sor- 
cerers, and the fornicators, 
and the murderers, and the 
idolaters, and every one 
that loveth and maketh a lie. 

16 And I, Jesus, have sent 
mine angel to testify unto 
you these things for the 
churches. I am the root 
and the offspring of David, 
the bright and morning star. 

17 And the Spirit and the 
bride say, Come. And he 
that heareth, let him say, 
Come. And he that is 
athirst, let him come : he 
that will, let him take the 
water of life freely. 

18 I testify unto every man 
that heareth the words of 
the prophecy of this book, 
If any man shall add unto 
them, God shall add unto 
him the plagues which are 

19 written in this book : and if 
any man shall take away 
from the words of the book 
of this prophecy, God shall 
take away his part from the 
tree of life, and out of the 
holy city, which are written 
in this book. 

20 He which testifieth these 
things saith, Yea : I come 
quickly. Amen : come, Lord 
Jesus. 

21 The grace of the Lord 
Jesus be with the saints. 
Amen. 



Suggestive Paraphrase 
But all evil dispositions and in- 
fluences are excluded from that con- 
sciousness. I, Christ, have appeared 
to you, to make known these things 
to the human consciousness. I am 
the truth which was taught by David, 
and I am the star of hope to human- 
ity. The divine Mind and the 
spiritual consciousness say to men, 
Come. And let him that heareth this 
message say to others, Come. And 
let him that desires good come. And 
whosoever will, let him drink freely 
of good and truth. If any man shall 
adulterate the truth, he shall suffer 
the plagues which are imposed on a 
wicked and adulterous mentality 
from the fact that by its own nature 
it is excluded from the realm of 
God : and if any man shall omit to 
heed and obey any portion of the 
truth, he shall exclude himself from 
the perfect and indivisible law of 
good, and as long as he does so, he 
cannot enter into the spiritual con- 
sciousness, and the joys thereof. 

The Christ, which maketh known 
these things, declares, that he will 
soon be known among men. Amen. 
So may it be, Oh Christ. 

The grace of the mediating Christ 
be with the spiritually minded. 

Amen. 



A PERSONAL APPLICATION OF THE LES- 
SONS OF THE APOCALYPSE 

A revelation of the things made known in the prophetic conscious- 
ness, which emanates from God, to show unto His servants the things 
which must quickly unfold to them. 

Before a person can make any beginning of either under- 
standing or applying the lessons of the Apocalypse, he must 
have distinctly and purposely entered upon the spiritual life 
through the service of God as Spirit and substance. He must 
have learned that Mind and its ideas or manifestations are the 
only realities. 

Then he may understand the Letters to the Seven Churches, 
and that it is required of him that he should undertake to 
consecrate to God and to the service of the spiritual order 
his attention, reason, will, intuition, love, sense of reality, and 
sense of substance. 

While engaged in such effort, there may come to him 
wonderful visions of the spiritual life, which is the end of 
attainment, — such as are given in the 4th chapter, and in 
various other places, in the Apocalypse. 

He will recognize the spiritual factor in his consciousness 
as the indwelling Christ, as the white horse and rider within, 
and he will know that this higher activity in his consciousness 
must war with and first control and finally overcome his 
human will and ambition, his human greed and selfishness, 
his sense of materiality and sensuality, also any sense of resent- 
ment or discouragement on his part, and all phases of super- 
stition and false belief. 

He will recognize the stage of his development when the 
impersonal Christ, as seven Angels of God, is beginning to 
overcome, and is suppressing in his consciousness, something 

383 



384 REVELATION INTERPRETED 

like a third part, materiality and sensuality, sensuousness and 
sub-normal psychic tendencies, mortal love and hatred, worldly 
wisdom, fleshly desires and resultant diseases, superstition and 
false doctrine, and every other form of evil. 

At this stage of attainment, there may come to him fuller 
revelations of truth and a more distinct and thorough-going 
uncovering of error. 

Then he may be called upon to conquer that tendency in 
human nature which, through desire or fear, renders allegiance 
to human or outward authority, rather than to listen to and 
obey the voice of God within, — that tendency of human nature 
which, for instance, led Israel of old to demand a king, a 
human ruler, despite the warnings of the prophet Samuel of 
the oppression and corruption which would follow. He who 
would heed the lessons of the Apocalypse must work his way 
free from human domination, whether personal, political or 
ecclesiastical, obeying God's law only, both in his thought and 
in his conduct, at no matter what sacrifice, else he will be 
numbered among those who "wear the mark of the beast, and 
his name, and the number of his name, whose names are not 
written in the Lamb's book of life." 

The whole realm of his consciousness will come under the 
judgment of Christ, and the lower elements will be trodden 
down, — with great suffering, if his lower nature resists the 
Christ. 

Then the seven Angels whom he recognized as having sub- 
dued his mortal nature to something like a third part, he now 
finds completing their conquest. Then he is shown wonderful 
visions of the fall of Worldly Lust within and without, and 
of the universal triumph of the Christ. 

Next, he is shown a vision of the millennium on the earth, 
which can only be fully realized after all men shall have 
entered upon and completed the same spiritual journey which 
he is taking. 

Last of all, there is unfolded to him in vision something 
of the glories of the spiritual, incorporeal man, dwelling in 



PERSONAL APPLICATION 385 

full, conscious union with God, unto whom he is finally to 
attain. 

To the true and earnest servant of God, this whole vision 
of the stages of development, here sketched in brief, is revealed 
"quickly" (comparatively so) after he definitely seeks to gain 
the vision ; and much of it comes to pass quickly, comparatively 
so, in actual experience ; but the full measure of attainment 
would seem to depend upon the progress of the human race as 
a whole. It does not appear that any person will fully demon- 
strate the millennial freedom from all sense of discord within 
and without until all men demonstrate it, both in this world 
and that to come. 

The supreme inquiry prompted and expressed by the 
Apocalypse has been well put by Mr. J. S. Hughes. It is this : 

"Shall Men Rule in Lust by the Power of Brutes, or Shall 
God Reign in the Power of Love?" 



386 NOTES BY THE READER 



REVELATION 



GLOSSARY 

Stage Settings for the Drama 

A definition of some of those symbols employed in the 
Apocalypse, which are not defined under the "Cast of Char- 
acters" on the chart at the end of the book. 

"Clouds", /'Smoke". The Holy Spirit, obscure and 
blinding to material sense. They often symbolize the 
majesty and glory of God and of the Christ. 

"Earth". In the spiritual sense, "the new earth" stands 
for spiritual consciousness. In the lower sense, the phrase 
"the earth" symbolizes the lowest phase of the carnal mind, 
— sensuality, materiality, including belief in matter. 

"Earthquake". The upheaval produced, mentally or 
outwardly, when truth meets error in violent conflict. 

"Fire". The purifying influence of the Holy Spirit. 

"Grass". In the higher sense, details of spiritual ac- 
tivity in human consciousness, humility. However, in the 
two places where the term appears in the Apocalypse, it is 
evidently used in a lower sense, symbolizing the details of 
ordinary human mental activities. 

"Hail". The dense, solidified condition of the carnal 
mind which resists "fire" and "lightning" in their purifying 
and enlightening work. Because the carnal mind seems to 
present an active rather than a passive resistance to the 
work of the Holy Spirit and of the Christ, it is symbolized 
by "hail", which can fall and strike and hurt, rather than 
by ice, which would be merely a symbol of passive resistance. 

"Heaven". In the higher sense, the spiritual conscious- 
ness. In the lower sense, the mental realm, where the forces 
of good and evil are contending. The word is used in con- 

387 



388 REVELATION INTERPRETED 

nection with situations which represent varying degrees of 
approach toward harmony and Spirit. 

"Jews". Chosen people. Spiritual initiates. False 
Jews are those who claim to be spiritual initiates and teach- 
ers, but are not. 

"Lightning". The Holy Spirit. The utterance and en- 
forcement of Truth, the militant activity of the Christ. 

"Mountains" and "islands". Established customs and 
institutions of human society. "Law and order", though 
often not the divine law and order. 

"Rivers and fountains of waters", "rivers of waters", 
"fountains", or "waters". Sources and channels of thought 
and feeling. In the higher sense, these expressions sym- 
bolize divine love and the divine ideas, regarded as the sup- 
port of true consciousness or life. In the lower sense, they 
represent the human emotional nature, and such intellectual 
ideas as are naturally associated therewith. Human love, 
though it is in a sense higher than anything connoted by 
the word "sensual", is, nevertheless, a manifestation of the 
"natural man", "who receiveth not the things of the Spirit 
of God". These expressions also stand for the human emo- 
tions which are the obverse of human love, such as hatred, 
malice, envy, jealousy, and for such intellectual activity as 
naturally accompanies them. 

"Sea". In the higher sense, "the sea of glass" stands 
for spiritual consciousness, the redeemed human conscious- 
ness, the Holy Spirit. In the lower sense, "the sea" sym- 
bolizes the sensuous and so-called psychic element in human 
nature, the "psuche" into which St. Paul says "the first 
Adam" is born (1 Cor. 15:45). 

"Ships". Human beings regarded as carriers, or mes- 
sengers, of either good or evil. 

"Thunder" or "thunders". The utterance or proclama- 
tion of God and of the Holy Spirit. The term does not seem 
to be used in the Apocalypse in a reversed sense. 



GLOSSARY 389 

"Sun, moon and stars". In the higher sense, the light of 
spiritual intelligence. Specifically, "the sun" symbolizes 
divine Mind ; "the moon", the Christ ; and "stars", right 
ideas, or even human teachers or messengers of Truth. In 
the lower sense, these symbols stand for "the wisdom of 
this world", or for "the carnal mind", which "is enmity 
against God". Specifically, in this lower sense, "the sun" 
stands for "satan" ;• "the moon" for "man-wisdom" or "man- 
rule" ; and "stars" for "fallen stars", evil influences, or even 
human teachers who have fallen away from good. As to 
whether, in any given instance, these expressions are em- 
ployed in the higher or in the lower sense must be deter- 
mined by the context. 

"Tree", or "trees". In the higher sense, "the tree of 
life", "the two olive trees", the Holy Spirit, or any particu- 
lar line of spiritual activity among men. In the lower sense, 
any well-established human doctrines, customs and habits 
of thought. These, though highly respected among men, 
are often strongholds of error. 



390 NOTES BY THE READER 



APPENDIX 



ST. JOHN THE EVANGELIST 

Abstract of an Address Delivered by the Rev. A. B. Beres- 

ford, D. D., Pastor of the Universalist Church 

of Walnut Hills, Cincinnati, Ohio. 

(By permission of the Author) 

The blackness of oblivion buries in its robe of obscurity 
that vast throng that has walked the earth — only one, here and 
there, is remembered. Since John the Evangelist lived nearly 
one hundred billions of humans have trod this globe. How 
few have left any trace, any memorial of themselves ! One of 
the sons of light, one of the choicest of the children of the 
spirit — one of the torch-bearers in this human procession — 
who was reserved for a high destiny and whose memory is 
fadeless, is John the Evangelist. The all-encompassing dark- 
ness of forgetfulness has not engulfed him — it is but back- 
ground for his luminous personality to radiate forth its death- 
less influence. He was not born to die — he is one of the 
immortal ones. His life and its lessons will claim our atten- 
tion for the hour. 

He was born in Bethsaida on the shores ol the Sea of 
Galilee in the Holy Land. His birth year was about the first 
of the Christian era — and thus he was about four or five years 
younger than Jesus, with whom his name is imperishably asso- 
ciated. (It will be remembered that a miscalculation was made 
in fixing the Christian era, and Jesus was born "4 B. C." — and 
really we live in the year 1918.) 

Behind him — as behind so many notable men of history — 
stands the unusual mother. His mother was Salome, the sister 

391 



392 APPENDIX 



of Mary the mother of Jesus. Thus he and the foremost man 
of all this world — Jesus of Nazareth — were first cousins. 
They had no small share of the same massive moral strength 
and the same far-seeing spiritual faculty. His father was 
Zebedee, a man of business importance in the fisheries. He 
was prosperous, was an employer of labor, had extensive busi- 
ness connections with distant cities — his son, John, making 
many business trips to Jerusalem in the interests of the busi- 
ness. One of the business partners of Zebedee was Jonas, the 
father of Peter and Andrew. Thus by inheritance, surround- 
ings, associations, social and business prominence, the Evan- 
gelist was far above the level of the average of his day and 
country. His education doubtless was identical with that of 
all Jewish boys of his time, the history, tradition, hopes, and 
the spiritual life of his people, and a trade — for every Jewish 
boy was taught a trade or handicraft. Jesus and Paul were 
no exceptions. He was in business with his father — fishing, 
buying, preserving, selling fish. "The grasp of every situa- 
tion," which is the characteristic of well trained business men, 
zeal in the cause at hand, energetic pursuit of worthy ends, 
vigor and even vehemence — which gave him the sobriquet of 
"Boanerges," or son of thunder — all bespoke a pronounced and 
persuasive personality. By inheritance and circumstance he 
was being fitted for a high destiny. 

However, had he been contented to remain a member of 
the prosperous firm of "Zebedee, Jonas & Co.," he would now 
have no claim upon us. Man's nature is larger than business ; 
it has capacities higher than even the largest business can fully 
employ. Doubtless he often conversed — in the glowing fervor 
of early youth — with his great kinsman, Jesus of Nazareth. 
With largeness and fineness of nature he readily comprehended 
the noble passions, ambitions, visions of the Man of Galilee. 
Sons of two sisters, they shared the blood bond of family — and 
what is more, they had many capacities and character-traits 
that were similar. Out of this boyish friendship came their 
spiritual partnership — which lasted during all their mortal 



ST. JOHN THE EVANGELIST 393 

lives. John became the first disciple of Jesus — and of all liv- 
ing men was nearest to the soul of his Master, toiled like a 
brother in his affairs, was his "bosom comrade," and is best 
remembered as the "beloved disciple." In him we find the 
coronation of friendship — the apotheosis of man's love for 
man. "His love to me was wonderful" — "More than brothers 
are to me" — this Jesus might have said. He was truly human 
— had a heart in his breast and red blood in his veins ! 

He was the inseparable companion of Jesus during the four 
stormy and stressful years of the Master's public life. He was 
helper in plan-making, heard His most confidential teachings, 
and was present at. the great public discourses. He was with 
Jesus upon the Mount of Transfiguration, and was thus by an 
object demonstration made to see that "in man there is an 
ethereal essence" that can never die. When the stars are old 
and the sun grows cold — even then shall the soul of man 
live pn ! 

He was at the gate of Gethsemane — saw the supreme agony 
of a great soul, fated to tread the wine-press of pain, peril, and 
premature death. He was at the side of Jesus at the Last 
Supper, at the betrayal, the arrest, and, because of some 
friendly relations with Caiaphas, the high priest — acquaintance 
made during the earlier business days — he was in the council 
chamber where Jesus was first arraigned ; was beside Jesus in 
the Pretorium when Pilate sat in judgment upon a cause he 
understood not; followed Jesus to Calvary! and received His 
last request from the cross, "Care for my mother." 

He saw the death-agony ; and he more than any other man 
created the Christian crusade; he took the wooden cross — a 
symbol of shame — made it the sign of a new power liberated 
upon earth, and with a little band went forth to conquer the 
world ! Well might the soldier and civilian who saw "the head 
fall upon his breast when he gave up the ghost" on the cross, 
say, "Another delusion is gone; another delusionist is dead; 
here is an end that has no new beginning." But alas — the end 
was not yet — from Golgotha went forth the power, conquering 



394 APPENDIX 



and to conquer ! Doubtless it is to John, more than to another 
man under God, that we owe this world-victory of the Cross. 

A stone was once hurled at Wendell Phillips — to silence his 
speech for human freedom. He picked it up, calmly showed 
it to the excited audience, and said, "He who threw this was 
not wise; you cannot kill an idea with a stone." The cross 
is not the end of the human story. 

John was the first to recognize Jesus as "he rose." The 
resurrection body — the kind of body souls shall wear through 
eternity — is a "border land question ;" John was the first to see 
the identity of the risen spirit with his former Master. "He 
was the same yet different," but identity was completely estab- 
lished. "The grave is not the goal" — any more than the cross 
was the end of his career. With this conviction born in his 
heart of heart, John rallied the other disciples — and began 
the new era. 

He was present at the Ascension and the Day of Pentecost. 
The power of a new conviction and the force of a new faith 
were born in the soul! This "faith," this "power," enabled 
John and the little band to stand up against the persecutions — ■ 
for opinion's sake — that were to burst out in hot flame, stop- 
ping at nothing — imprisonment and death came to many. He 
is humanity's everlasting leader of those elect ones who can 
side with unpopularity and be strong in present failure ! 

Next we see him in the "Council of Jerusalem," in the 
year 51 of our era. He is accounted "one of the three pillars" 
of the church. The issue before the council was a simple one ; 
should all disciples of Jesus first conform to the Levitical Law 
— in all its demands and its ceremonies? Can only Jews be 
Christians? Or, is Christianity a world-religion — and has it a 
spiritual message and a social gospel for all men, irrespective 
of race, blood, land, age? 

It was the hour of fate. Upon the council's reply to these 
questions hung the future of the world — because that hung 
upon the nature of Christianity. Should it be a religion for all 
men, or only for Jews? Should it be national or universal? 



ST. JOHN THE EVANGELIST 395 

John stood for the universal — the cosmopolitan, the world- 
religion — and so launched Christianity upon its happy way. 
"Fear not, for I bring you good tidings of great joy which shall 
be unto all peoples." Had the other decision been made, then 
Palestine would indeed have remained the cradle of Christian- 
ity, and its grave. 

Through nearly two millenniums the influence of that act 
of the Evangelist is a controlling force. If it had not been 
for the stand taken on that day and hour for a universal gospel 
we would not now be in his church ; this present holds all the 
good the past has had ! 

Tradition now takes up the tale of this fruitful life; and 
herein tradition is, probably, as trustworthy as history. He 
continued to preside over the fate of the church ; was perse- 
cuted under Domitian ; sent to Rome — in his appeal to Caesar ; 
was subjected to "the third degree" of torture to extort evi- 
dence (the story runs that he was cast into boiling oil — but 
sustained no hurt) ; was then exiled to work as a slave in the 
mines of Patmos — a rocky isle in the Mediterranean ; was re- 
leased under Nerva ; went to Ephesus — where there was a 
strong Christian Church ; there lived and wrote — being gath- 
ered to his fathers at a ripe age. Tradition fixes it variously 
at from ninety to 120. Like all the other disciples, the place, 
date, and manner of his death are unknown. "No man know- 
eth his sepulchre." 

The best in the New Testament is a family legacy to man- 
kind. The four gospels carry the message of Jesus. The 
Epistle of St. James is "from the brother of the Lord" — the 
Fourth Gospel, the three Epistles of John, the Book of Revela- 
tion, are from the blood-cousin of Jesus — the beloved disciple 
whose day we are commemorating. 

The marvel is, not that we have so little in writing from 
this gifted family, but that we have so much. A great man 
uttered his soul — a few heard his words, felt their sweetness 
and light, were moved by their power, and spoke them to 
others ! Thus came our . Gospels. John wrote his thoughts, 



396- APPENDIX 



emotions, dreams, upon parchment — gave it to the breeze to 
float or fall — others caught it up — read the mystic and mighty 
words— preserved and re-wrote them — and so through the 
ages have come the epistles and the apocalypse. Words — 
freighted with a message from on High — are more enduring 
than the pyramids. 

To but few men has it been given to so controllingly in- 
fluence the history of man as it was to John the Evangelist. 
Millions of men have borne his name. To him was given the 
insight — than which nothing has reached loftier levels — to dis- 
close to men the inmost nature of the Supreme Unseen Spir- 
itual Power — "God is Love" is his master gift to man. 
Churches and cathedrals — the world over — are dedicated to 
St. John the Divine." 

In retrospect John — with his mind's eye — saw Jerusalem 
and the three Temples, Solomon's, Zerubbabel's, Herod's, all to 
suffer destruction from the ravages of time and barbarous 
force. The last temple had fallen when he was seventy years 
of age ; but he had his cheering visions of the future — he saw 
another and a better Jerusalem, the New and the Holy City. 
Of its many wonders one was of startling surprise, "I saw no 
Temple therein." What is the meaning of this portent? The 
future would have many temples : men, with flawless lives, wills 
set in righteousness, purified and perfected souls — these are the 
living temples dedicated to the Living God. "Nothing shall 
enter in that defileth." "I John, saw the Holy City the New 
Jerusalem coming down from God out of Heaven ; and the 
glory of God did lighten it, and Christ is the Light of it." 
"This temple is holy, which temple ye are." 



. 












' 









3HT 









Rev. G. A. Kratzer. 



THE BOOK OF REVELATION. 

THE DRAMA OF THE CONFLICT BETWEEN GOOD AND EVIL ON THE FIELD OF HUMAN CONSCIOUSNESS, AND OF THE FINAI TRIUMPH OF GOOD. 

DISTRIBUTION OF CHARACTERS BY ACTS. 




ail" 



■■Hail" 18:71. "Karlhqinko" (8:5) 
.Uenhlon and Apollyon (9:11' 
Court without temple (11:2) 



"Voices, lirHilnings and thtinrh rs" 
(8:5). "The reed like a rod" (11: 
1). (The Holy Spirit, the Spirit 
of Truth, is the only proper meas- 



rating truth from error). "Angel 
flying in heaven" (8:13). "Voice 
from the altar" (9:13). "Seven 
thunders" (10:2). "Two witness- 
es" (truth and love), "two olive 



"Ships" (8:9) 

Angels of the Trumpets (9:1 

"Four angels at Euphrates" 



Chap. 8:3 also describes the c 



"I lie star Wormwood" (8:11) 

■'II'" Wlen ,-L-u" ('1:1 >. "The city 
12:11; Sodom and Egypt ( 1 I :S'l 



'The horsemen" 



Act IV (11:19-1.::1K) 

WOMAN, DRAGON AND 
BEASTS 



'Hail" (11:19) 

'Great red dragon" (12:3) 

'The serpent" (12:14) 



"Christ .I.-sus" ( 1 2 : r. > 
"Michael" (12:7) 
"The Lamb" (12:11) 



"Lightnings, voices and thunder- 
ings" (11:19) 

"In His temple the ark of His tes- 
tament" (11:19) 

"A loud voice in heaven" (12:10). 
"The wilderness" (withdrawal 
from materia! into spiritual sense) 
(12:6, 14). "The two wings [truth 
and love] of an eagle" (12:14) 



SEVEN HARVEST ANGELS 



'Devi and satan" (chap. 20) 



The Lmb (17:14; 19:7) 
White horse and rider (19:11) 
Angela! sun (20:1) 



"Wine of the wrath [aril. 

poured out into the cup i 

Hiciiation" [zeal or passi 

10) 

"Angel of fire" (14:18) 






Angels of Michael (12:7) 



redeemed", described in 14: 
This company of the re- 
nearly every 



deemed appears 



Fallen Babylon (14:8) 



The bast (17:3, 8, 11; 19:19) 



"Vials if the wrath [zeal] of God" 
(chaps. 15 & 16). "The temple of 
the tabrnacle of the testimony in 
heaven' (15:5). "Smoke from the 
glory t God" (15:18). "A great 
voice at of the temple" (16:17) 



he fierceness of His WTath 

(16:19). "Angel from 

(18:1). "A great voice 

people in heaven" (19:1). 

The milennial consciousness (20: 

The camp of the saints" 

' ity" (20:9). 

>m ijoa out of heaven" 

"The book of life" (20: 



-6). ^The 



The fate prophet (19:i 



Three mclean spirits" I 1(1:1 



Lord God Almighty. 



"The new heaven and the 
earth" (21:1). "The holy citj 
Jerusalem" (21:2). "A 
voice out of heaven" (21:3). 

(21:6). "Seven vials full 
seven last plagues" [to 
(21:9). "A great and high i 
tain" (21:10). "That great 
(21:10). "The glory of 
(21:10). "Her light" (21:11 



high" (21:12). 
(21:15). "The 

ngel" (21:171. 



The nnh'.ns 



"The light of i 
:24). "The glory and the hop 
the kings and of the nation 
:24, 26). "They which a 
tten in the Lamb's book 
" (21:27). "A pure river 
ter of life" (22:1). "The tr 
life" (21:22) 



Twelve apostles of 



, .',}.., the t-lely :ee<n "ISvrlse 



die in the Lord" 



describid in 20:4 



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WORKS PUBLISHED 

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5521 CORNELL AVE., CHICAGO, ILLINOIS 

From which, and from dealers, they may be purchased 
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"DOMINION WITHIN" 

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A book of 224 pages, printed in large type on heavy 
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